Tiananmen Square Protests and Tankman

By: Hugo and Heidy

Background Information:
Tiananmen Square located in Beijing, China.
Tiananmen Square is a location for many important
events in Chinese history. (PBS Library February, 2014).
Protests began on April 18th, 1989 with college
students. (CNN Library February 2014)

(PBS and CNN February, 2014).
The Problem:
The Chinese government was communist.
In China this means that the Chinese people have no say
in what changes happen in their country and who runs it. It
s basically a dictatorship.
(PBS February 2014)
To make China democratic.
To give journalists freedom of speech.

(CNN)
Activism Tactics Used:
On April 18th, thousands of students marched to
Tiananmen Square calling out for a more democratic
government. (CNN Library February, 2014).
On May 13th, over 100 students began a hunger strike;
soon several thousand others joined in.
An unidentified man stepped in front of a column of tanks
and refused to let them by until he was pulled away.
(CNN February, 2014).

Opposition Response:
About 10,000 people were arrested before and
after the protest.
After weeks of demonstrations, Chinese troops
fired on civilians. (CNN Library February, 2014).
Zhao Ziyang, General Secretary of Chinese
Communist Party pleads for an end to the
demonstrations.
(CNN February, 2014).
Resolution:
The protest was a complete failure. China still
remains one of the worst communist countries
in the world. Even now, all media is controlled
by the government and the people have no say
in what happens with the country.
(CNN February, 2014).
Tank Man
www.youtube.com/watch/v=qq8zFLlftGk
Tank Man was a man that stood in
front of the tanks that were heading
for Beijing to stop the protest. He
would not let them pass and he even
stood on one and started hitting it.
Tank Man was named a symbol of
protest and and a symbol against
oppression worldwide.
Works Cited:
CNN- Tiananmen Square Fast Facts.http://www.cnn.
com/2013/09/15/world/asia/tiananmen-square-fast-
facts/ 5, February 2014.
PBS- The Memory Of Tiananmen 1889 http://www.pbs.
org/wgbh/pages/frontline/tankman/cron/5, February
2014.
Wikipedia.The Gate of Heavenly Peace. Long Bow
Group Inc. in collaboration with ITVS. 1995. Retrieved
15 January 2012. 6, February 2014.
THE END.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME!
ANY QUESTIONS?