Today is 37 years since the Tiananmen Massacre
On this day in 1989, the Chinese Communist Party ordered the People's Liberation Army to open fire on its own citizens.
Peaceful pro-democracy students and workers who gathered in Beijing's Tiananmen Square demanding freedom, anti-corruption, and basic human rights were crushed under tanks and gunfire.
The protests began in mid-April 1989, triggered by the death of reformist leader Hu Yaobang. On May 13, students began a hunger strike. Martial law was declared on May 20, but protesters remained peaceful.
In the early hours of June 4, troops advanced with tanks and live ammunition. Soldiers fired on unarmed civilians blocking their path in the streets surrounding the square.
Hundreds to thousands were killed. Thousands more were imprisoned, tortured, or disappeared.
To this day, the Chinese government censors all mention of it, erases it from history books, and threatens anyone who remembers.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio commemorates the 37th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre:
“On June 4, the world marks 37 years since the Chinese Communist Party ordered its troops to attack thousands of peaceful demonstrators in and around Tiananmen Square.
Chinese students, workers, and other civilians who lost their lives had gathered to exercise their natural rights and demand democratic reforms and accountability for corruption.
We remember their lives and honor their legacy. No amount of censorship can erase the past. Those who sacrificed to uphold their unalienable rights of free expression and peaceful assembly will be vindicated someday.”
上大学时第一次听到菲利普·摩根(Phillip Morgan)的这首歌,一提六四,脑袋里都是这个旋律。
In Memory of the Victims of June 4th, 1989 (Blood Is in the Square) https://t.co/kqg0heaRUk 来自 @YouTube