a blog by La Kifo I must be an alien, I don't understand the world that I am living in right now. Sorry guys, I get a little serious here. Can we stop being stupid? So, the internet really badly wants to push that what is happening right now is equal or greater than the protest that one man in China's Tiananmen Square launched. Let's look at the obvious differences between the two situations.
1. June 4th, 1989 A large group of student protesters gathered in China's Tiananmen Square to advocate pro-democracy. The response of the People's Republic of China was to open fire on the mass of protesters. China declared martial law because of demonstrations and what seemed to be non-violent protest (something people nowadays know nothing about). Chinese soldiers murdered what people estimate between either hundreds and thousands. 2. "Tank man" stood in front a regiment of tanks, blocking their path. What we saw, was a singular man standing in front of a war machine. "Tank man" was protesting the suppression and murder of either hundreds or thousands of protesters the day before in Beijings Tiananmen Square. 3. "Tank man" blocked tanks from advancing, TANKS. A tank would have a multitude of options in relation to obstructions in their path. He could have been killed immediately after standing in front of that tank. He risked his life from the beginning of his protest until the end of his life. 3. "Tank man" has since never been seen. His identity has never been confirmed. 4. These demonstrations and protests were done in order to start a conversation about ushering in a new regime (government). The young citizens of China, desired democracy. 5. Not a single one of these protests had anything to do with race, harassment, or police enforcement. 6. This "Tank man" sacrificed his "freedom" and most likely his life for his cause. None of those facts apply to what is happening in Baton Rouge. What is happening in Baton Rouge is an entirely different conversation. We are not talking about freeing ourselves from a corrupt, tyrannical government. We are talking about the place that racism has in our society. The women being arrested in the photo, will never been held against her own will in prison for an inordinate amount of time. She will not be murdered. She will have the privilege to live the rest of her life free, something that "Tank man" has not had the luxury of. The consequences of the protests in Tiananmen Square were far superior to the ones we face today. It is insulting and degrading to those who fought and died for their beliefs in Tiananmen Square to compare the historical significance between two pictures of both events. Not even just those who fought died, it is insulting to the people who continue to fight with their lives for an ideal or thought. There are places in this world which still use slavery as an institution. Sometimes it is hard to step back and understand the greater picture, but it is essential in pushing forward the ideals of justice and freedom. We face larger problems in this world than the ones in this country. We live on one planet, not in one country. Comments are closed.
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