The May 4th Movement: The parallels and differences

Today marks the 89th anniversary of the May 4th Movement here in China. So, on this anniversary, I thought I'd take a moment to analyze the parallels and differences that exist here in China today.

First, for those who are unfamiliar with the May 4th Movement, allow me to give you the historical background behind it. On May 4th, 1919, some 3,000 students from Peking University and other higher-learning institutions here in the capital gathered in front of Tian'anmen to denounce the government in power at that time for not doing enough to protect China's territorial integrity. What they were upset about at that time was the fact that the colonial powers (mainly England and France, though there was some frustration with the United States as well) screwed China over in the Treaty of Versailles which ended the First World War.

Britain and France were bogged down heavily in fighting against the Germans in 1917, and needed help from wherever they could get it. As such, the British appealed to the Chinese government to allow it to draft the thousands of Chinese nationals that were living in England at that time for the war effort. China agreed, under the condition that if and when Germany was defeated, the German concession of Shandong would be repatriated back to China. An agreement was struck, and over 100,000 Chinese nationals were sent in to action (mainly as runners, field engineers and laborers) and were said to be critical in helping to win the war. But when it came time to settle the score after the fighting was over, Britain and France screwed China over in the negations and handed Shandong over to Japan instead of back to China as was originally promised. And because of the political instability at the time here in China following the fall of the Qing Dynasty, the Beiyang government (which was in power in the northern part of China and, internationally, was considered the legitimate government of China at that time) was not politically strong enough to put up enough opposition. As one might imagine, this created waves of anger amongst Chinese people, and led to the May 4th protests. And while the protests were suppressed in the capital, they spread throughout China in the weeks that followed, and eventually led to the birth of the CCP, among other political movements at the time, including the concept of 白话 (baihua, or vernacular Chinese) which allowed the average person to learn to read and write, given at that point, the Chinese written language was mainly only understood by the academic elite. As such, the May 4th Movement is considered by many to be the catalyst for the birth of modern China.

So if one were to look at the May 4th Movement in 1919 in today's context, you might be able to draw some similarities surrounding what is happening here in China today. All the recent fervor surrounding the torch relay and the protests against France and the 'western media' is basically all connected to indignation amongst young Chinese against being screwed around by other countries. The same thing happened 89 years ago. So, with this in mind, are we seeing the start of another May 4th Movement here in China? In my estimation, no. Allow me to explain why.

At the time of the 1919 protests, China was in political upheaval. Following the Xinhai Revolution in 1911 that ousted the then-reviled Qing Government and ended thousands of years of dynastic rule here in China, China essentially devolved into a collection of feudal states that were governed by one warlord or another who were all vying and scheming to consolidate and expand their respective spheres of influence. As such, in my estimation, the Chinese people yearned for stability. So when China was screwed over by the 'west' back then, in my estimation, China was longing for a sense of nationalism and unity. Today, China is unified. As such, there's no yearning amongst the masses here in this country for mass political movements against the 'the west.' Sure, there are small shots of anti-'western' protests, like the Carrefour demonstrations, but they have basically petered out. Another reason we won't be seeing another May 4th movement here in China is because it's difficult to rally around a perception. In 1919, China had a tangible and tactile reason to be upset. 'Western' powers had physically ceded Shandong to Japan. A Chinese person 89 years ago could look at a map of his or her country and physically see that a chunk of its territory was not under its control. Today, frustrated Chinese are rallying against a perception. While there may be general agreement amongst many that there is an anti-China bias in the 'western media', the evidence - while being dolled out in many different forms - isn't tactile or 100 percent conclusive. Hence the great internet debates about whether or not there is or isn't an anti-China movement. In 1919, it was cut and dry. China had been screwed over. As such, I would argue, that - despite the thousands of voices crying out in protest on the internet and at demonstrations - there isn't anything specific enough to rally around to create a mass movement beyond what we've already seen.

The May 4th Movement here in China was a turning point, and should be celebrated. From its ashes came some of China's great leaders, including Sun Yat-sen, who, through great political will and determination, helped to unify this country and laid the foundation for China's strength today. I know, from a historical sense, we are talking about apples and oranges comparing then and now. But it is interesting to examine the political zeal that existed 89 years ago to that which is now in play here in today's China.