San Francisco Stands in Solidarity with Fellow Citizens in Jiangyou, Sichuan
Summary: On August 9, 2025, the San Francisco Branch of the China Democracy Party held a protest in front of the Chinese Consulate, condemning the CCP authorities for condoning campus bullying and violently suppressing ordinary people in Jiangyou, Sichuan!
Author: Hu Lili
Editor: Li Congling Executive Editor: Lu Huiwen Translation: Lu Huiwen
On the afternoon of August 9, 2025, the San Francisco Branch of the China Democracy Party staged a protest in front of the Chinese Consulate to show solidarity with the people of Sichuan, denouncing the CCP authorities for turning a blind eye to campus bullying and brutally repressing ordinary residents of Jiangyou, Sichuan. Pro-democracy fighters gathered together to expose the atrocities of the CCP’s totalitarian rule, vowing to seek justice for their compatriots crushed under the regime’s iron fist.
Before the protest began, participants engaged in an in-depth and passionate discussion about the Jiangyou incident, with many expressing deep feelings of helplessness and despair under the CCP’s iron-fisted rule. The atmosphere at the event was charged, as speakers delivered impassioned condemnations of the CCP dictatorship’s ruthless abuse and cruel repression of the people. Fang Zheng, Vice Chairman of the China Democracy Party National Committee and Chairman of the San Francisco Branch; Zhao Changqing, a leader of the 1989 student movement; Chen Chuangchuang, Executive Director of the China Democracy Party National Committee; and CDP members Qiu Yuefei, Hao Jianping, and Guan Yongjie all took turns speaking. Their words struck like unsheathed swords, hitting the mark with every sentence and resonating deeply with the crowd. Notably, the protest drew attention from passing vehicles—drivers honked their horns to express their support and solidarity with the demonstrators.
The protesters declared with anger: “In China, speech is silenced and the people are brutally suppressed. We cannot remain silent! If we cannot gather inside China, we will come to the gates of the CCP’s consulates; if we cannot speak out at home, we will raise our voices here in San Francisco, shouting ‘Bring the CCP to justice! Xi Jinping step down!’”
This protest was not only a declaration of war against the CCP’s tyranny but also a battle cry for the fight for democracy and freedom in China, calling on the world to pay attention to the suffering and resistance of the Chinese people.
Some photos in this article were provided by Yongjie Guan.
In 1976, red slogans on the wall of Fudan University’s Handan Campus read:
“Defend the Party Central Committee with our blood and lives!”
“Defend Chairman Mao with our blood and lives!”
“Anti-Party element” Xi Zhongxun paraded through the streets with a placard hung on him.
“Counterrevolutionary revisionist element” Peng Dehuai was “flown” on a “soil airplane” (a humiliating stress position) to a mass rally for trial.
In 1966, photographer Li Zhensheng attended a public denunciation rally in a sports stadium in Harbin.
A Party committee secretary and his wife, also a cadre, were publicly criticized, with ink splashed on them.
Such denunciation rallies took place intensively every day across China.
Red Guards holding “Little Red Books” gathered in public squares.
A celebration event at Tiananmen Square in Beijing in 1966. People’s Pictorial, 1966, Issues 11–12.
The Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) was a nationwide political movement launched by Mao Zedong to consolidate his personal power and eliminate political rivals, under the banner of “Smash the Four Olds and Establish the Four News.” During the movement, large numbers of officials and intellectuals were publicly denounced, social order collapsed, the economy and education fell into paralysis, and cultural heritage suffered devastating destruction. Millions died unjustly, plunging the country into a decade of turmoil.
Jiangyou and Tiananmen Square: When people go to streets again
Abstract: In 2025, Jiangyou caused public protests because of the unfair handling of the school violence case, and the scene was reminiscent of the Tiananmen Square incident in 1989. The article analyzes the differences between the two demands and groups, and reveals that under high pressure and blockade, the people’s pursuit of fairness and justice is still there.
Author: Yiwei Mao Editor: Feng Still Responsible Editor: Luo Zhifei Translator: Ming Cheng
On July 22, 2025, in Jiangyou, Sichuan, a video of a 14-year-old girl being beaten exploded on social media. In the video, the three violent girls not only abused and slapped the victims wantonly, but also threatened that “it’s okay to go to the police station several times”, with a posture of no awe of the law. Jiangyou police then reported that the victim was “slightly injured”, and the perpetrator was only reprimanded because he was underage. The result of this treatment, on the contrary, aroused greater public anger.
On August 4, 1989, angry citizens took to the streets, singing the national anthem and shouting slogans in front of the Jiangyou Municipal Government, demanding that the abusers be punished, the injuries should be re-identified, and the police officers should be held accountable. The protest lasted until late at night. The police sent to block the road and force the field to clear. Many people were arrested, and physical conflicts broke out at the scene. This scene reminds people of another historical node: the Tiananmen Incident on June 4th in 1989. At the moment when the street people shouted justice, the cry of “we want a statement” traveled through 36 years of time and space, which was touching.
Looking back at Tiananmen Square from Jiangyou
June 4th is a national student movement, which eventually evolves into a political crisis, put forward deep institutional demands such as “freedom of the press” and “democratic reform”. Jiangyou’s protest focused on the mishandling of a school bullying case – a local law enforcement problem, which seems to be small, directly hits the people’s collective distrust of the law and power.
The protesters of June 4th are mainly college students and intellectuals, while the participants of Jiangyou are ordinary citizens, parents, primary and secondary school students, who are the more “down-to-earth” silent majority. They are not political activists, they just want justice.
This may be the real picture of China today: the call for political reform may have left, but the desire for fairness, justice and truth has never been extinguished. The Jiangyou incident is like a muffled thunder, reminding people that even if the high pressure has been stable for many years, the streets may still be a place for people to express their anger.
“Slight injury” and heavy social trauma
The “minor injury” identification by the Jiangyou police became a direct trigger for the protest. This judgment is not only questioned by netizens to “harm the common sense of justice”, but also reflects the public’s deep distrust of power corruption and injustice in law enforcement.
What’s more shocking is that the offenders in the video repeatedly show off their “immunities”, as if the Law on the Protection of Minors has become a shield against the law. This phenomenon reveals the huge loopholes in the implementation of the Law on the Protection of Minors, and also reminds us that when the system design is abused, what it protects is no longer children, but malice itself.
On the other hand, what is heavier is the disappearance of information. The protest was deliberately “cooled down” and even “muted” from the beginning. There are no trending searches on Weibo, the videos on TikTok were quickly deleted, the B station blocked the keywords, and Zhihu closed the discussion. A social event that should have caused a heated discussion throughout the country has become difficult to search and forward on the mainstream Chinese Internet platform.
Even if it is just to forward protest videos and question the police report, many accounts have been restricted or blocked. Therefore, violence, anger and protests occurred, but it “did not happen” on the domestic network.
Jiangyou is not the end, but the prologue?
Jiangyou’s protest has been suppressed, the media has been accused of commenting, the video has been removed from the shelves, and the topic has cooled down. But is this matter really over? No. It leaves a deep memory and a question: when legal channels cannot express their demands, what other ways can the people fight for justice?
Thinty-six years ago, college students in Beijing tried to awaken the reform of the system with their blood; today, parents and middle school students in Jiangyou tried to exchange songs, national flags and shouts for justice. But the government still chooses to remain silent and clear the field. History will not be repeated simply, but will brew the next awakening in oppression and silence.
Write at the end
As a Chinese overseas, I see the tears of Jiang You’s parents, the grievances of Jiang You girls, and the indifference of Jiang You’s government. I want to say that when “it’s okay to enter the police station” becomes the confidence of the violent, the real problem has long gone beyond the campus violence.
After June 4th, some people said that Chinese people would never go to the street again; but Jiangyou told us that the fire on the street, even if it was weak, would never be extinguished. What it is waiting for is just a chance to burn again.
These two photos were taken in 2021, the year when everyone in public places was required to wear a mask. A baby, only a few months old, could not properly wear a mask, so two holes had to be cut into it. Through these holes, with clear and innocent eyes, the baby explored this confined world.
Author: Zhong Ran Editor: Luo Zhifei Chief Editor: Lu Huiwen Translator:He XingQiang
The Jiangyou Anti-Tyranny Incident and the Victory of the Common People of Bangladesh
Abstract: On July 22, in Jiangyou City, Sichuan Province, a case of school bullying involving minors occurred: a 14-year-old girl was insulted, threatened, and beaten by three other girls. On August 4, a large number of citizens gathered at major intersections in Jiangyou to protest, but were met with the most brutal crackdown by the CCP authorities since the Tiananmen Massacre.
Author: Yuan Jue
Editor: He Qingfeng
Chief Editor: Lu Huiwen
Translator:He XingQiang
On July 22, 2025, in Jiangyou City, Sichuan Province, a 14-year-old girl was insulted, threatened, and beaten by three other girls. When videos of the incident were posted online, they sparked public outrage. On August 4, after the police announced their account of the case and their handling of it, citizens questioned the police response and grew angry, leading to large-scale protests.
Large numbers of Jiangyou residents were violently arrested by police, some even loaded onto pig-transport trucks.
On August 4, crowds gathered at major intersections in Jiangyou City to protest. Police set up barricades, but many protesters broke through. Demonstrators sang the March of the Volunteers and shouted slogans such as “Return our democracy,” “Give us the truth about the child,” “Severely punish the perpetrators,” and “Enforce the law.” Many demonstrators were arrested. Some citizens gathered outside the neighborhood where the bullies lived to protest, placing funeral wreaths at the gates.
That evening, students joined the protest marches, confronting the police and chanting “Unity,” “Reject bullying,” and “Return our democracy.” In the early hours of August 5, the police launched a more violent crackdown—charging into the crowd with batons and using pepper spray. Many students and citizens were beaten so badly that their heads were split open, and the student protesters were quickly dispersed.
Although the protests were suppressed after August 5, the public debate sparked by the Jiangyou Incident did not die down. Chinese citizens at home and abroad used Twitter and YouTube to speak out for the bullied girl and her deaf-mute mother, and to condemn the CCP’s brutal suppression of peaceful protests by students and citizens. Some drew parallels to the protest movement in Bangladesh on August 5 of the previous year, in which mass resistance toppled the authoritarian regime of Sheikh Hasina. They expressed hope that, in China too, local protests could ignite a nationwide movement, leading to the CCP’s downfall and the realization of democracy. Here, I share an older article summarizing the lessons from the fall of the Bangladeshi regime for resisting the CCP’s dictatorship.
On August 5, 2024, the government led by former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was overthrown by angry citizens. Hasina was forced to resign and flee to India in haste. Nobel Peace Prize laureate (2006) and renowned Bangladeshi economist Muhammad Yunus organized a transitional government composed of former officials, the military, and student opposition groups—signaling a decisive victory for the Bangladeshi people in their month-long movement to reform the public service quota system.
Bengali youths occupy government buildings during the anti-quota movement.
This protest movement began on June 5, 2024, when Bangladesh’s High Court reinstated the old civil service quota system, allowing more than half of government vacancies to be allocated to the descendants of veterans of the country’s Liberation War (the “freedom fighters”). Ordinary young people without such backgrounds had to compete for the remaining minority of positions. This system, similar to the CCP’s entrenched privileges for the “second-generation reds” (children of high-ranking officials), quickly provoked student anger and protests across Bangladeshi universities. Rather than listening to the students, Hasina’s government violently suppressed the protests, killing more than 200 people. The protests soon expanded beyond the single issue of quotas into a broad, society-wide political movement, eventually overthrowing Hasina’s regime.
Former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Hasina delivers a speech in front of a damaged metro station.
Chinese netizens on social media expressed their support—either openly or indirectly—for the anti-hereditary-privilege protests in Bangladesh, as a way to show their own dissatisfaction with the CCP’s entrenched privileges and corruption. Observing this two-month-long movement, and considering the advice and analysis from experts and scholars, I have summarized the following points:
Any social reform or unexpected event that triggers unrest can ignite the flames of a Chinese democracy movement. In Bangladesh, it was an unfair court ruling on civil service quotas that sparked nationwide protests. In China, the privileges enjoyed by CCP officials and their children, and the vast wealth they accumulate through proxies, far exceed anything in Bangladesh. The injustices, persecution, and violent repression faced by the Chinese people are far worse. With the economy on the verge of collapse, youth unemployment high, and a suffocating atmosphere of resentment, Chinese society is like a powder keg—any spark could trigger an explosion. While some desperate individuals quietly take their own lives, others lash out violently in public.
In 1989, the death of former CCP General Secretary Hu Yaobang was the spark that triggered the Tiananmen democracy movement. Citizens first mourned Hu’s unjust treatment, then channeled their anger into demands for political reform. Protests spread nationwide. Today, there are tens of thousands of protests in China each year. With the economic downturn, wage arrears, real estate bankruptcies, and food safety scandals, protests have increased sharply. The CCP spends more on “stability maintenance” than on national defense. Most protests are either violently suppressed or stalled out, as in the Henan rural bank scandal. The challenge is how to sustain such movements, expand them, and generate broad social impact.
Tiananmen Square during the 1989 June Fourth massacre .
Solidarity between different protests is key. When protests support each other and connect, the dictatorship’s machinery of repression is stretched thin, making effective suppression difficult. Since the 2008 Weng’an incident in Guizhou, the CCP has prioritized local stability. Xi Jinping’s regime has implemented “grid management,” dividing urban neighborhoods into small zones with “grid workers” tasked with gathering information and mediating disputes—similar to the ancient baojia system. This extends the CCP’s surveillance and control to the extreme.
Most current Chinese protests are scattered and issue-specific, such as disputes over undelivered apartments, frozen deposits, or unpaid wages. These narrow and localized actions rarely occur simultaneously or in the same place. Once the immediate grievance is partially addressed, the movement is easily dismantled. Organizers are punished to “kill the chicken to scare the monkeys.”
The recent Hangzhou food delivery workers’ protest began when a security guard bullied one rider; others responded in solidarity, some traveling from dozens of kilometers away. This shows the unity and rapid mobilization potential of certain labor groups. If other groups could act simultaneously with diverse demands, the effect could be much greater.
The White Paper Movement that broke out in late November 2022.
The attitude of the military is decisive. In Bangladesh, a key reason for the protesters’ victory was that senior military officers told Hasina they would not personally protect her or fire on the people. They would only ensure her personal safety for 24 hours. Knowing she had lost, Hasina fled. In contrast, during the Tiananmen Massacre, although 38th Army Commander Xu Qinxian refused orders, he was quickly dismissed and arrested, and other military units eagerly massacred the protesters to show loyalty.
The CCP is not monolithic. In the past, there were reformist insiders—such as Du Daozheng and Li Rui of Yanhuang Chunqiu—who supported political reform. Even some “second-generation reds” have expressed open hatred for Xi Jinping. Xi’s policies have not only devastated the economy but also hindered the elites’ ability to transfer wealth overseas, especially after Hong Kong’s decline as a financial hub. This internal discontent can be leveraged.
Strike at the regime’s soft spots. While the CCP rulers do not care about the dignity or lives of ordinary citizens, they do care about their own wealth and families. In Bangladesh, when the police used violence against protesters, citizens retaliated against the families of security forces, causing many to abandon their posts and flee with their relatives—crippling the military’s will to suppress dissent. Such asymmetric tactics, while not admirable, can be effective against overwhelming state violence.
Before the 1911 Revolution, revolutionaries used assassinations to shake the Qing rulers’ confidence, such as Wang Jingwei’s attempt on Regent Zaifeng and Wu Yue’s attack on the five ministers sent to study constitutional reform abroad.
We can use technology to identify and expose the foreign residences and assets of the CCP’s second and third generation elites, as well as the addresses and family members of current and former police, prosecutors, and judges responsible for persecuting dissidents. Creating and publicizing a “CCP Perpetrator List” could serve as a warning and deterrent.
Winter has descended, and the people still suffer and cry under tyranny. Yet there is nothing more tragic than a deadened heart. The Chinese people have never lacked the genes of resistance. The “Jasmine Spring” that belongs to China will not be far away.
Pen as Sword: Overthrow the CCP’s Tyranny and Rebuild a Democratic China
I am Zhao Jie, a member of the China Democracy Party. On July 29, 2025, the 12th issue of the China Democracy Party’s official journal The Opposition (print edition) has been printed. At the party headquarters in Rowland Heights, all staff of The Opposition held the first full in-person discussion meeting.
I am honored to witness this historic moment, and even more honored to serve as the editor and financial officer of The Opposition, as well as to join the newly established External Liaison Department as its head. All of this reflects my inner yearning for freedom, justice, and truth.
With the pen as my weapon, I aim to accelerate the downfall of the Chinese Communist Party and establish a democratic nation that belongs to the Chinese people. This is my responsibility.
Universal Mandatory Social Security — The CCP Digging Its Own Grave
Summary: The CCP’s forcible rollout of universal mandatory social security will trigger business closures and a wave of unemployment, stemming from a massive pension deficit. Public outrage may accelerate a political crisis for the regime.
Author: Luo Zhifei
Editor: Li Congling Chief Editor: Lu Huiwen Translation: Lu Huiwen
On August 6, 2025, an incident occurred inside China’s Great Firewall that is more malignant in nature and more far-reaching in impact than even the Jiangyou assault case — the mandatory social security regulation set to take effect on September 1.
The reason this has struck such a deep chord and generated such massive public attention is that the Jiangyou beating incident does not affect everyone, but this new social security regulation will trigger a nationwide wave of bankruptcies, closures, and layoffs. Everyone will suffer. I have never seen a political party dig its own grave so thoroughly and so enthusiastically.
According to relevant media reports, China’s Supreme People’s Court issued what appears to be a harmless judicial interpretation. On July 31, the court released the Interpretation (II) on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Labor Dispute Cases.
It sounds niche and unrelated to most of us, but its provisions explicitly target employers avoiding social security contributions and employees voluntarily giving them up. It states that any agreement — whether reached through mutual negotiation or a unilateral promise by the employee — to forgo social security contributions is invalid.
Some might think this is protection for workers, but rather than protecting them, this policy plants seeds of mistrust between workers and employers and will massively accelerate closures, bankruptcies, and layoffs.
It eliminates all possibilities of not paying social security — such as mutual consent or opting out in exchange for higher wages — and even ties compliance to things like children’s school enrollment, cutting off every escape route for ordinary people.
China’s economy is already struggling; foreign trade is declining daily, more problems are surfacing, and many businesses are barely hanging on. Some are even operating at a loss just to hold onto their storefronts, their industries, or their market share. Previously, employers and employees could agree to skip social security contributions, with companies paying higher salaries instead — a win-win.
Now, the CCP’s sudden policy is effectively forcing small businesses into a dead end.
Clothing retailers and restaurants are particularly hard-hit, because they cannot afford the social security costs. These two industries employ large numbers of ordinary people and, aside from food delivery and ride-hailing, offer the most accessible, relatively stable jobs for those without higher education. They represent a broad swath of the population.
But with mandatory contributions, business owners will do the math and realize their labor costs have suddenly skyrocketed. Many will simply decide: “If I have no employees, I have no business. I’ll close my shop — what can you do about it? Sitting idle at home is still better than bleeding money by keeping the shop open.”
Once the new rule is enforced, there will inevitably be mass closures of businesses and storefronts across China.
Why is the CCP doing this? Because China’s pension system has a huge deficit.
Publicly available information suggests the shortfall is at least 1.2 trillion yuan. Two months ago, China’s auditing authorities investigated 13 provinces, and the CCP itself admitted that over 40 billion yuan had been diverted in these provinces to cover basic expenses in some counties — in reality, to pay civil servants’ salaries. This is strong evidence that the government is running out of money.
China’s economy and pension deficit have reached a point where the CCP is willing to destabilize the country and strip the grassroots bare rather than cut into its own privileges. Does this interest group really have no money? Not at all — the CCP government has no money, but the elites themselves are wealthy beyond measure.
It’s just like the final years of the Ming Dynasty: the poorer the common people became, the more viciously officials at every level squeezed them. The homes of bureaucrats were overflowing with riches.
The day when official oppression sparks popular rebellion is drawing closer — especially in light of the Jiangyou incident.
When the CCP does not touch the people’s interests, they remain silent, too busy trying to survive to bother speaking out. But when it strikes at their core interests, the people will unite and teach the CCP a lesson. On that day, the CCP will understand what it means for the people to be a vast ocean — and who truly owns the country.
