25th Anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Protest

I mailed myself a card today to commemorate the 25th Anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Protest in 1989. It is slightly different from the one I made last year. It was a big disappointment that there had been no redress so far after 25 years. However, there is no doubt that who is on the right side of the history. I am confident that it will not take another 25 years to properly honor the memories of innocent people who lost their lives in and around Tiananmen Square.

Update: the card was received next day

Macalester College, St. Paul, Minnesota

Postcard US-2550963 from Missouri shows a beautiful night view of the back of Old Main, The Link, and the Dewitt Wallace Library at Macalester College, St. Paul, Minnesota. It reminds me that this is the time of the year when college students pulling all nighter before the final exams. However, unfortunately, it is also the time when some unprepared students would try anything to desperately avoid, or even just postpone for a hours, the final exams.

Harvard University had a bomb threat on Monday, December 16, 2013 that turned out to be a hoax, made by a student in an attempt to avoid a final exam. I remember that when I was in graduate school at the University of Florida, there were several occasions as well when students called-in bombs anonymously to dodge finals. In my impression, it never worked and the exams were not canceled. But that was a pre-911 era. Now the time has changed and the authority took it seriously. A 20-year old student was soon identified and charged with making bomb threats. So, the message is: study and read your books, don't even think about those tricks that will never work. A proverb in Chinese "躲得过初一，躲不过十五" means that it will happen sooner or later. Why not just face the music, and don't try to get yourself in trouble that could land you in prison for up to five years.

Goddess of Democracy and Statue of Liberty

Goddess of Democracy (middle), Statue of Liberty (left) and its replica (right)

I made this 5"x7" postcard to commemorate the 24th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Student Protest. The picture in the middle, taken before dawn in the Tiananmen Square, Beijing, China, on June 3, 1989, features the Goddess of Democracy. The 10-meter-tall (33 ft) statue was built by students of the Central Academy of Fine Arts in China (中央美术学院) using foam and papier-mâché over a metal armature. It was placed at Tiananmen Square on May 30, 1989. Also known as the Goddess of Democracy and Freedom, the Spirit of Democracy, and the Goddess of Liberty, it became a rally point after the martial law was declared on May 20, 1989.

The statue was crashed down by tanks and destroyed by soldiers entering the Tiananmen Square to clear out protesters pre-dawn on June 4, 1989, less than 24 hours after this photo was taken. 

Although the sculptors of the statue played down the speculation that it was modeled after the Statue of Liberty, for fears of being labeled as "pro-western", there is no denial of their resemblance. However, when memories fade along with the elapsed time, we tend to forget what really happened. Ironically, now we see the erosion of the civil liberties in the U. S as well. We thought freedom and civil liberties can and should be sacrificed in the name of security. When we pass by the replica of the Statue of Liberty in front of the New York New York Hotel and Casino, how many of us will pause for a second to ponder what freedom and civil liberties mean in current time, rather than just treat it as an imitated attraction in front of an amusement park ride? 

I found Stephen Foster's song Gentle Annie on Youtube, performed by the National Taiwan University Chorus. For the lost or hurt during and after the Tiananmen Square Protest, you will not be forgotten.

Several replicas of the Goddess of Democracy have been erected worldwide permanently or temporarily to commemorate the 1989 Tiananmen Square Student Protest. I am collecting postcards and photos of those replicas. I will appreciate it if you can send me a copy.

Photos on this postcard:

• Goddess of Democracy: Beijing, China, June 3, 1989
• Replica of Statue of Liberty: Las Vegas, Nevada, June 4, 2011
• Statue of Liberty: New York City, New York, November 21, 2011