My first impression was the sheer expanse of the square. It's huge. It's imposing in just how much concrete and flat surface it takes up. The simple lines of the buildings around it are testament to a modern China. Next to it you can see the red walls and yellow roofs of the Forbidden City, brightly colored, with its ornate decorations...a monument to a China of dynasties past. Side by side, it is, like much of Beijing, a study in contrasts.
While walking onto the square, I couldn't help but remember the student demonstrations that took place on Tiananmen Square in 1989. I tried to imagine that expanse of space filled with students and tents. I tried to picture the Goddess of Democracy standing in the Square facing Mao's portrait. I looked across the expanse of the square wondering just where that statue stood,. Facing such a stark, vast cityscape, it was hard to imagine how many people it must have taken to fill the Square, and what it must have been like to be there.
After I returned home, I discovered that Chai Ling, a leader in the student protests at that time, had just written a book, called "A Heart for Freedom." It was her memoir, and she gave her account of what happened during the Tiananmen student protests and subsequent crackdown. It was very eye-opening to read about what went on behind the scenes, and I marvel at her courage, poise, charisma, and leadership at such a young age. She is a year younger than I, which means that in 1989 she was a tender age of 23 when she became a leader in the student demonstrations. I was nowhere near as poised or as committed to any cause at that age.
Chai Ling's book, however, is so much more than just another narrative of what happened in Tiananmen Square during the spring of 1989. She also talks about some very personal issues, including abortion--and the much larger issue of China's strict rules and the one child policy that has given rise to a culture of abortion, and especially forced abortion. There is no doubt that Chai Ling and the other student leaders were incredibly courageous to lead the demonstrations, filled with idealism and their patriotism. To write this book, however, she also took a lot of courage and great leap of faith, not only to talk about her own conversion to Christianity, but to come to terms with some of her choices that were made in her past. I appreciate her resolve to bring some of these issues to light that do not show China in the most positive vein--and in fact, issues that I'm sure many in the government would prefer to remain hidden. In revealing her own inner conflicts, she also discovered what she is being called to do now--to try to help save girls and women in China who are victims of the one-child policy through her non-profit organization, All Girls Allowed.
After all that Chai Ling endured and all that she has done to overcome the adversity and challenges in her life, it would have been easy enough for her to retreat into her current life, which in many ways is an example of the American Dream, as the founding President and Chief Operating Officer of her own successful company, Jenzabar, Inc. However, it is clear that her desire for justice and to find a voice to represent those who have no voice led her to establish All Girls Allowed.
While we are not all meant to be just like Chai Ling, nor have we all been gifted with her leadership skills or charisma, we can still learn from her story. She taught us that it *is* possible to overcome even the most dire of circumstances, and that these situations can beat us down or make us stronger. Chai Ling's faith helped her to ultimately overcome some of the demons that had been plaguing her, and to lead her toward finding her calling and mission. May we all find our own purpose in life and the faith to pursue it with courage.