Join the National Endowment for Democracy to commemorate the victims of Tiananmen Square with a discussion featuring participants from the 1989 pro-democracy movement alongside leading advocates, analysts, and activists working to defend human rights and democratic freedoms.
On June 4, 1989, the Chinese government carried out a violent suppression of peaceful demonstrations in and around Beijing, resulting in the deaths of thousands of civilians. More than three decades later, the Tiananmen massacre remains not only a defining symbol of the Chinese Communist Party’s intolerance of democratic aspirations, but also a lens through which to understand Beijing’s evolving efforts to prevent another “Beijing Spring” from emerging.
The program will examine how the movement unfolded across different regions, including Tibet and the Uyghur region, the nature and consequences of the subsequent crackdown, and how the legacy of June 4th continues to shape China today. Panelists will also explore Beijing’s use of censorship, surveillance, transnational repression, and economic coercion to silence critics at home and abroad, as well as the ongoing struggle to defend freedom, historical truth, and democratic values in China and around the world.
