TIANANMEN SQUARE REVISITED

Gail and Dong Xue will revisit the historical scenes that played out on Chinese college campuses during the spring of 1989, when student protests against rampant government corruption erupted and intensified—without participants knowing how devastating the consequences would soon become. The pair took part in these protests in different cities, although not in Tiananmen Square itself.

The discussion will focus on two key aspects of the events and their aftermath:

a. How the Chinese government attempted to erase the history of the 1989 movement and continues to do so to this day.

b. How the new generation of young Chinese students has largely lost the spirit of resistance.

SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES:

Gail Xue was a college student when nationwide student protests against government corruption erupted across China in the spring of 1989. She actively participated in the movement and narrowly escaped the subsequent crackdown following the Tiananmen Square massacre. Gail arrived in Syracuse, NY in July 1989, where she subsequently earned her Ph.D. in Sociology from Syracuse University. After a brief teaching career, she pivoted to consulting and now owns and operates her own educational consulting firm.

Dong Xue also actively participated in the 1989 student protests and joined Gail at Syracuse University in October 1989, where he majored in Computer Engineering and earned a master’s degree. He went on to work as a systems engineer and manager at EDS, Xerox, Channel 16 Fairfax County and Marriott. Dong has since found his calling in service and currently serves as the IT director at the United Methodist Church.