Where Were You On...

[FairBol]

....June 3rd, 1989? That's the day that Chinese troops first moved into Beijing's Tiananmen Square, with the objective of putting down a student pro-democracy demonstration (which they did so brutally). 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rt2vy_QftKU9

Semi-official death count (from sources including the Chinese Red Cross) stands at up to 2,600 civilians, and approximately 50 solders and policemen.

For my part....I don't remember exactly where I was when the first news came in, but I know I was about seven years old.   

[FairBol]

BTW, I'd be interested in talking to v0031 about how this is regarded in China.  I hear from my research that the topic is, officially anyway, censored by the Chinese Government.  They deny that this event happened, and the young seem to know nothing about it. 

In other news, censorship is bad. 

[dead0man]

He doesn't talk about anything except the English language, but especially not that subject.  The PRC sucks and he could be in serious trouble if he did.

[FairBol]

OK

[SingingAnalyst]

I was in Boston, preparing to graduate from MIT. I had finished my thesis in Aug. 1988 and gone back home to Sterling Heights, MI. I was back in Boston for the weekend.

As an aside, on June 4 the Toronto Blue Jays defeated the Boston Red Sox 13-11 at Fenway Park despite Boston leading 10-0 after 6 innings.

The mood at MIT was unbelievable. Large numbers of Chinese MIT students were demonstrating and were in tears. Later, I would hear that a small number of counter-protesters were present in Boston.

I received my BS in Physics on a warm day, Monday, June 5. Our graduation speaker, Sen. Paul Tsongas (D-MA) informed the graduates "some of you, sadly, will die young." Tsongas himself was not long for this world: though he ran for President in 1992, he died of cancer Jan. 19, 1997.

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

You've lived a beautiful life, Mathman.

[SingingAnalyst]

You've lived a beautiful life, Mathman.

Thank you.

[Blue3]

I would be born later that month.

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

There was a lot of similar things going on at the time in Eastern Europe, Taiwan, and South Korea, but those turned out differently. I had started reading the newspaper sometime around then, so I probably read about it at the time.

[vanguard96]

I was in the final swing in 9th grade. I would end up leaving that school and transferred to a private school for the last three years of high school.