History, Memory & June 4^th

No, it’s not a misprint.  If you are an American educator accustomed to celebrating the US birthday, it is understandable that you expected to see July 4^th in the title. Instead in June let’s take a look at “June 4th,“ better known in the West as Tiananmen Square.   It’s an event whose anniversary will pass largely unacknowledged in China.  Any reference to “LiuSi” is scrubbed from mainland textbooks and the internet, thanks to an army of censors employed by the Chinese Communist Party.

The shared content for next month’s Sunday Conversation is an article, a photo essay and a podcast about Tiananmen Square.   Though China is a central focus we hope to broaden the discussion to how history and memory are intertwined or even confused in our countries.

Memories of Tiananmen Square – New Yorker

https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/memories-of-tiananmen-square

In China, the Unspoken Trauma of Tiananmen Square- New Yorker

https://www.newyorker.com/podcast/political-scene/in-china-the-unspoken-trauma-of-tiananmen-square

Photo Essay: The 1989 Tiananmen Square Protests- Atlantic

https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2014/06/1989-tiananmen-square-protests-photos/100751/

LINK to Slidedeck for this Sunday Conversation:

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1GcZNPNn4SFEC4nSW5rI6gNtHIgquNCK0QJ7J4fAXLq8/edit#slide=id.gdbb0056f21_0_17