Egg On Mao
October 7, 2009 · By Jonathan McLeod
Denise Chong’s new book Egg On Mao, tells the story of a Chinese dissident, Lu Decheng, who defaced a portrait of Mao in Tiananmen Square. If this article is any indication, it will be an enthralling read:
Ottawa author Denise Chong tried to look inconspicuous as she stood at the pre-arranged rendezvous point on a busy street in the Chinese city of Liuyang.
Before arriving, Chong had used a map to memorize the layout of the city and the locations of her clandestine destinations. She did not want to arouse suspicion or provoke queries from helpful strangers by looking lost or in search of something forbidden to foreigners.
The stories of dissidents and people who greatly imperil themselves to fight oppression should be widely read and forever trumpeted. I have not picked up Ms. Chong’s book, but I will, and I would suggest that everyone else does as well. As a bonus, there will be a book launch at Library and Archives Canada on Tuesday October 27 at 7:30 pm. It will take place at Library and Archives Canada on Wellington St. in Ottawa. I hope to be there.
Today, decades later, I still have vivd memories of the Tiananmen Square protests. It was an awakening, uplifting and horrifying experience. In the years right before I entered high school I witnessed the protests, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the destruction of the Soviet Union, the Velvet Revolution and the end of the Cold War. It was a significant time to become politically aware, and the lessons that were learned, though they may have been forgotten by some, should cherished. Ms. Chong has done a tremendous service to keep some of them alive for us.
We must be around the same age as those same events in history were formative in my own political awakening. I agree that we need these stories to be taught, and, arguably, not just stories from foreign lands but from our own.
Canadians could benefit from a more critical appraisal on the role of government in civil society, how an over reliance on big government is actually detrimental to civil society.
Overall, if there is a theme here, maybe it is that stories of struggling for one’s liberty inspire others to be aware; presently considerate of how being a free-born citizen of a great country (the subject of an ancient Crown … since Magna Carta, even it is under the law … [a nod in the direction of your recent post on the monarchy ... ha ha]) is not without its sacrifices.
Be it all of our technological trappings or other diversions, we are too quick to excuse people for not thinking, which requires effort, for not standing up to received opinion or to the powers that be when they are wrong, which requires courage.
The Kite Runner is an excellent movie: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tm5e6AqrNF8
Jonathan McLeod’s piece makes mention of the Ottawa book launch of Egg on Mao by Denise Chong on Oct. 27 at the Library and Archives; the building is closed due to an accident at a heating plant — the book launch will now be at THE CUBE GALLERY, 7 Hamllton. Could you please relay this message to him.
Thanks.
Hi Denise,
Thanks for letting us know. I hope to be there, but either way I’ll be getting your book. Thanks for doing all this important work.