For the past six years since the outbreak of the anti-extradition movement in Hong Kong in 2019, the spirit of collective resistance by the people of Hong Kong still deeply resonates in people’s memories. On September 14, Chinese community members in the greater Los Angeles area gathered in front of the Chinese Consulate General in Los Angeles to commemorate this democratic movement and call on the international community to hold the Chinese Communist Party accountable for trampling on freedom and democracy.
The event was jointly organized by the Global Awakening Democratic Alliance of the Chinese Democratic Party Headquarters and the Freedom Bell Democracy Foundation. More than seventy participants dressed uniformly, holding flags and banners, chanting slogans such as “Five demands, not one less” and “Revive Hong Kong, the revolution of our time.”
The anti-extradition protests that erupted in Hong Kong in 2019 shocked the world: there were numerous large-scale rallies, with peak attendance reaching over a million people. Citizens took to the streets, students went on collective strikes, medical workers formed the “Lennon Wall,” and cross-sector strikes and the “anti-authoritarian march” ensued. Despite facing tear gas, batons, and mass arrests, the people of Hong Kong demonstrated through peaceful and steadfast actions that they are not the “rioters” as portrayed by the authorities, but rather citizens defending freedom and dignity.
Speaking at the event, Li Zhiyang, a member of the Chinese Democratic Party and one of the organizers, stated that Hong Kong, known as the Pearl of the Orient, became the center of massive protests in 2019 due to the Chinese Communist Party tearing up the Sino-British Joint Declaration and undermining the “one country, two systems” framework. He emphasized that the anti-extradition movement was not just against an unjust law, but also a protest by Hong Kongers against the tyranny of the CCP, and this gathering aimed to support Hong Kong and defend freedom.
Another organizer of the event, Sun Ye, the Vice Chairman of the Los Angeles branch of the Chinese Democratic Party Headquarters, expressed that the CCP regime refused to address the “Five demands” and instead responded with violence, lies, and imprisonment, exposing its true nature as an enemy of democratic values worldwide. The resistance in Hong Kong is not an isolated incident but part of the global frontline against authoritarianism.
Zhou Lanying, the Vice Chairman of the Los Angeles branch of the Chinese Democratic Party Headquarters, believed that the unprecedented scale of protests in Hong Kong was due to the extradition bill’s betrayal of Hong Kong’s rule of law and the “one country, two systems” principle. She criticized the CCP for reneging on its promises, with the Hong Kong government and police acting as enforcers, violently suppressing protests and subjecting the youth to bloodshed in Hong Kong.
She emphasized that the citizens standing up to defend Hong Kong’s rule of law and freedom are not rioters but true defenders of freedom; the resistance in Hong Kong is a universal struggle against authoritarianism.
Huang Zongxian, a member of the Chinese Democratic Party and one of the event organizers, highlighted in his speech the clear and heavy path of resistance in Hong Kong, from the Umbrella Movement to the anti-extradition protests, where millions of citizens took to the streets but faced brutal crackdowns and the imposition of the national security law, ultimately turning from “semi-autonomous” to “fully controlled.” He pointed out that “authoritarianism will not voluntarily relinquish power; only by overthrowing dictatorship can true freedom and democracy be achieved.”
The entire gathering lasted nearly an hour, attracting passersby to pause and observe. Participants expressed their commitment to continue supporting democratic activists in Hong Kong and China until freedom and justice truly prevail.