My 同士,
With the passing of our leader, Mao Zedong, I feel as if I have lost our emotional support. We have shown our contribution and loyalty to him in everything in our lives. And now that the politics of the Gang of Four is over, it feels like an era has ended. It has been many years since I started writing this blog, but as I look back into the past, the political stress on us has been immense. One of my friends told me that after the oppressive rule by the Gang of Four, her mother was sentenced innocent after the end of Gang of Four, but was never able to meet her. This is because she has gone to far places to protect herself instead of being with her mother and being suspected. I hope society will change and there will be no such sad farewells.
You are probably aware of the difference between rural and urban areas, which used to be very large, and the Cultural Revolution, which aimed to reduce this gap and produce a successor to the revolution. It was a political struggle that mobilized the masses, but it is ambiguous whether the goal of this Cultural Revolution was achieved. Because the sacrifices were too much, it was a movement that directly mobilized the Red Guards and changed established notions of what was possible. Today, I want to talk more about this movement. The cultural heritage related to religion was destroyed, and those with wealth, such as intellectuals and landowners, were expelled. In other words, the most peaceful people in this period were poor peasant families. Also, the Red Guards, who were ardent Maoists, were ordered to attend the Down to the Countryside Movement, in which they were instructed to go to the countryside and farm. This plan was an apparent failure. Some young people successfully learned the importance and difficulties of farming, but many ran away or died from the harshness of the work.
Our life at this time was fear and trembling, as we fell upon each other and were always on the lookout to avoid suspicion of treason. Even young people who were optimistic about such revolutions were sometimes considered traitors within a day. I was told that one young student, especially those whose fathers were suspected of being not loyal to Mao, were told by their classmates, “You sons of Reactionary Capitalist stinking intellectuals,” and their families were torn apart. (p. 51) In some cases, the mother was cut off to prevent harm to the whole family. At school, “Those students who had the right to wear the Pioneers’ triangular red scarf received much more praise than those who didn’t, no matter what their grades;” (p. 16). In a world where one never knows when one might be labeled an insurgent and face the worst possible consequences, there is always a sense of uncertainty. Under these circumstances, I do not fully agree that the Cultural Revolution was a success.
Thank you for reading,
As you are wrapping up your reporting, I can see how you are falling out of the intense support you once had for Mao. Lots has happened since you’ve started your reporting career. I feel like this is the final push to really make sure you retire as the old traditions are completely out of society and it is the younger generation trying to make China grow.
You make a good point, about how exhausting constant revolution was, and I failed to mention this in my writing. Your example of a mother and daughter unable to reunite was a very powerful and good representation of what was wrong with the Cultural Revolution.
The comment about the grades and how exhausting it was shows the negative impact of the Cultural Revolution outside of social, familial and mental harm. A whole generation lost the opportunity for in-depth education.
I completely agree. The lost education for this generation could have been a lot more detrimental to the future of China than it actually was. Sending most of the intellectuals at the time to pretty much waste time in the rural areas of China was not a smart move.