Impact and Legacy of the Cultural Revolution

A Public Talk by Professor Xu Youyu

Thursday, October 13, 2016

4:00-5:30 PM, Orozco Room

This year is the 50th anniversary of the Cultural Revolution in China. To mark this extraordinary period in Chinese history, the India China Institute has organized several events that examine the revolution’s significance and its lasting impact on China and the world. The events will feature leading scholars on the subject, some of whom experienced the revolution firsthand.

Seminar Series:

Reflections of the Cultural Revolution is a seminar series with Xu Youyu, a Professor at the Chinese Academy of Social Science and a current Scholar in Resident at The New School. The cultural revolution was full of violence and suppression, and continues to be shrouded in conspiracy. This seminar series is comprised of four parts, with each part focusing on a different theme, and attempts to address some of the crucial questions concerning the movement. Professor Xu will deal with key controversies surrounding each theme and develop his own positions.

Xu Youyu was a teenager in the Red Guard at the time of the Chinese Revolution and witnessed the Tiananmen Square protest of 1989. As a pro-democracy activist, Xu was one of the most prominent signatories of the 2008 Charter 08 manifesto, which demanded political and humanitarian reforms in China.

This is the fourth and final lecture in this series with Professor Xu. This seminar will explore whether the Cultural Revolution was a period of great democracy or anti-democracy? Why do Mao’s former loyal followers fight for democracy? Do Chinese today condemn the Cultural Revolution, or view it with some nostalgia?

A link to RSVP for the event will be posted here.