• WolfLink@sh.itjust.works
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    4 hours ago

    First, what the protestors in Tianamen didn’t do was break into the government buildings with the intent to kill specific members of the government and to overturn the results of an election to install a leader of their own choice. That happened in 2021.

    Also the death toll in 1989 was much much larger.

    If you want a better US example, maybe something like the killing of striking mine workers in the US although I’m struggling to find an example of a single event that comes close to the scale of Tianamen.

    • folaht@lemmy.ml
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      57 minutes ago

      That’s because at least before any other student group decided to storm government buildings which was rumored to happen as there were already many police and soldiers present, one group of “peaceful” protesters decided to kill over 100 soldiers on the same street and one day before tank man decided to jump on a tank.

      The “peaceful protest” was far more violent than the US insurgency was, since the US insurgents did not have such a violent group among them.

      That happened in 1989.

      It was the Capitol Hill Jan 6 insurgency or the similar Hong Kong 2019 insurgency but got way way more aggressive before any military action or counteraction was taken.

      What Jan 6 and Tianenmen square share though is that once the insurgency took place the military was called in, but during the Jan 6 Capitol Hill riots, the rioters Capitol Hill rioters actually all left, not wanting to confront the military, while at least some of the Chinese insurgents on the street stayed and died fighting, while people on the square were peacefully evacuated.

      • WolfLink@sh.itjust.works
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        3 minutes ago

        That’s because at least before any other student group decided to storm government buildings which was rumored to happen

        I wouldn’t find it surprising that some of the protestors suggested something like that. But the fact is that this didn’t happen, and the protestors (and bystanders) who were killed were not attempting to break into a government building, attack government officials, or overthrow the government. If they were killed by security guards while attempting to rush the palace, that would be different.

        one group of “peaceful” protesters decided to kill over 100 soldiers on the same street and one day before tank man decided to jump on a tank.

        The protestors did fight back. But that’s a way higher number for military deaths than I’ve seen recorded anywhere, and thousands of civilians (including a lot of bystanders) were dead before tank man did his thing.

    • MeaanBeaan@lemmy.world
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      3 hours ago

      I think the best parallel that could be drawn would be the [Kent State Shootings.] (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kent_State_shootings) given the similarities between the Kent state students’ goals and the Tiananmen students’ goals.

      Though even then there were only four fatalities. No where near Tiananmen. Plus the US government isn’t doing anything to try to hide the murders either.