Title: The mourning of the people
Photographer(s): Ben She. Yi Ming
Writer(s):
Designer(s):
Publisher(s): Beijing Publishing House, Beijing, China
Year: 1979
Print run:
Language(s): Chinese
Pages: 228
Size: 22 x 24,5 cm
Binding: Softcover
Edition:
Print:
Nation(s) and year(s) of Protest: China, 1976
ISBN:
An edited book documenting Zhou Enlai's funeral and the public outpouring of grief. Zhao was among the most charismatic and beloved Chinese statesmen. The public reaction to his death was so significant that it caused Zhou’s political enemies within the Party to prohibit further mourning. Wreaths were removed and the handing out of photographs of Zhou was banned. This led to widespread discontent against Mao and the Gang of Four, culminating in the Tiananmen Incident (5th April 1976), when some 2 million people visited Tiananmen Square to commemorate Zhou's memory. The suppression of mourners led to public protest and rioting. This book’s publication by the State, as all books had to be at this time, is seen as a passing of eras from the heavy censorship of the Cultural Revolution to a new China under Deng Xiaoping.
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