Tank Man (Wang Weilin?) (March 10, 2014) (Feminist Paper Doll Project 2014)

March 10, 2014

Tank Man (Wang Weilin?)

On June 5, 1989, a column of Chinese tanks was dispersed into Tiananmen Square to roust student protests that had taking place (nonviolently) for the previous two days.

As the tanks approached, a young man walked up to the tanks and made them stop. He was seen climbing up into the tank and talking with soldiers in the tank. He continues to step in front of the tank, shooing them away, telling them to leave the protest to non-violent means.

Very little is known of this man. The man was thought to be Wang Weilin, a 19 year old student in Beijing. He reminds me of Rosa Parks who said, "The only tired I was was of giving in."

The raw footage of that day in 1989 can be seen here: http://youtu.be/YeFzeNAHEhU