Javier Negrete Jr

Dr. Wanda White

English 1102
March 24, 2014
All men and women are born with an innate sense of curiosity. Mankind desires to
explore the world in order to understand its functions. Impact occurs when curiosity and
passion overlap to make a difference in somebodys world. Over the past and current
century, the image of the university student has become iconic for the portrayal of reform.
Internationally, university students are known for their passion, patriotism and altruistic
behavior. To understand the importance of the university students involvement for reform
in a more critical and relative way, it is imperative to observe how their passion manifests
in their culture, how policy creates limits to their mobility, and how these students
overcome these limits.
The Chinese and the Taiwanese
The Chinese and Taiwanese students had a special case in their situation and it is
proposed that it was the result of an old Chinese tradition. China, in the late twentieth
century, was experiencing a student led movement to make China more democratic shortly
after the death of the beloved General Secretary Hu Yaobang on April 15
th
, 1989. The
students formed an alliance, marched for several weeks later, stubbornly occupied
Tiananmen Square, and experienced a violent reaction from the Chinese military on June
4
th
with the notable Tiananmen Square incident. Taiwan, in around the same time period,
experienced a similar case. In contrast to the Chinese the Taiwanese started by with a
smaller number of followers, proposed a platform that sought to re-elect the National
Assembly, abolish the old constitution, present a better political platform, and to prepare a
National Affairs Conference to discuss political reform. In observation of the events Teresa
White (author of The Perils of Protest) explains that the Chinese and the Taiwanese
movements ended in completely different ways (White). The Chinese movement died
violently, and the Taiwanese movement ended voluntarily and peacefully. The scholars
who have analyzed and compared the Chinese and Taiwanese problems at hand of the
student protests in the 1980s and the 1990s propose that culture was one of the factors
that determine the fate of the unions (White). For example, a state-of-grace (elitism) is
traditionally given to the scholars in China because they are said to be enlightened. White
explains that the Chinese movement was flawed because this cultural detail was strongly
incorporated (White). Those who were elites did not mingle with the social details of the
organization. In contrast to the Chinese movement, the Taiwanese performed effectively
because their union was based on friendship and harmony. Their patience and reluctant,
yet voluntary, decisions to step down left a better opportunity for change. The point that
needs to be made is that culture will affect any student led movement. At times, it will
determine how effective the movement will be. The events and dynamics that existed in
China are only replicas of the student activist behaviors in Central America.
Mexico in the 1960s
Before the historical events in China, Mexico experienced a student led campaign for
activism. The book, the Plaza of Sacrifices is a profound study of the social interactions
that occurred in the Mexican student activism in response to the events that led up to the
Tlatelolco Massacre. According to the research and analysis of Elaine Cary ( author of the
Plaza of Sacrifices) Mexicos student activism is the result of a growing middle class and a
growth of student populations in the universities (Cary). Also, Cary explains that the global
momentum of the international uprisings were also motivation for the students of Mexico
to protest against the government (Cary). Upon collecting the necessary information to
make a conclusion on the students reaction to the government policies in Carys work, one
question was not answered. What really sparked the students and professors to speak by
the thousands in Mexico? What event made the Mexican republic feel shocked and
violated? Joe Richmans and Anayansi Diaz-Cortes article on the truth behind the Mexican
protests in the 1960s explains that a minor revolt at a high school after a soccer game
caused need for enforcement teams to stop the fights. The enforcement teams shot
bazookas at the doors of the high school to open them. The unnecessary use of that deadly
force killed a handful of students and enraged others. Joe and Anayansi describe October
2
nd
, 1968 as the climax of the student rage when the military came to take the leaders of the
movement that led a grand gathering in the Tlatelolco square (Diaz-Cortez, Richman). Fires
were shot and it is still a mystery on the size of the death toll (Diaz-Cortez, Richman).
According to Carys research, the students continued to march and form guardias, or
forms of protective militia (Cary). Cary explained that the student population requested
the liberation of political prisoners and the removal of political bosses and the government
officials would only respond by asking the student to maintain peace and harmony. To
legitimize the movement and to counter the government policy, the movement turned to
one man named Barros Sierra. He was a respected government official who made the
movement to be considered as a very serious and well established.


Works Cited


Basu, Amrita. Two Faces of Protest: Contrasting Modes of Women's Activism in India.
Berkeley: University of California Press, 1992. 1-20. Web
Carey, Elaine. Plaza of Sacrifices: Gender, Power, and Terror in 1968 Mexico. Albuquerque,
NM: University of New Mexico Press, 2005. 1-25.
Diaz-Cortes, Anayansi, and Joe Richman. "Mexico's 1968 Massacre: What Really Happened?."
(2008): n. page. Web. 7 Apr. 2014.
<http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=97546687>.
"Venezuelan Protest Leader Take into Custody." Washington Post. (2014): n. page. Web. 19
Mar. 2014. <http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/venezuelan-protest-
leader-taken-into-custody/2014/02/18/b3382952-98ca-11e3-b931-
0204122c514b_story.html>.
White, Teresa. The Perils of Protest: State Repression and Student Activism in China and
Taiwan. University of Hawaii Press, 2001. 5-20. eBook (White 5-20)