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The Red Guards in Historical Perspective: Continuity and Change in the Chinese Youth Movement*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 February 2009

John Israel
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Although organised by students and young intellectuals, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has had a love-hate relationship with these groups. Throughout most of a quarter century of rural insurgency, the CCP was hard put to manipulate political activities among individualistic young urban intellectuals. In the mid-twenties, the Communist Youth League (YCL) resisted the Stalinist directives of Party leaders. During the war against Japan, thought reform was deemed essential to insure the loyalty even of those who had undertaken the arduous trek to the Border Regions. Furthermore, the CCP laboured under a doctrinal handicap: although students were invaluable for organising intellectuals, workers and peasants, it was embarrassing for the party of the proletariat to have to rely upon this educated eélite. During the united front periods of the mid-20s and after 1937, students were defined as “petit bourgeois,” which made them acceptable allies. After the CCP's break with Chiang Kai-shek in 1927, a more radical party line blamed these petit bourgeois for such Stalinist follies as the Canton Commune. Throughout the “united front from below” of the early 30s, students were divided into “progressive” proletarian and “reactionary” bourgeois elements, the former to be utilised, the latter to be excluded. The ideological conundrum remains even today.

Type
Recent Developments: The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution
Information
The China Quarterly , Volume 30 , April 1967 , pp. 1 - 32
Copyright
Copyright © The China Quarterly 1967

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References

1 Now that YCL members are a majority in the universities, students are distrustful of the unscrupulous opportunists willing to exploit friends as stepping stones into YCL or the Party. Morris Wills (a student at Peita, 1956–62), unpublished manuscript on Peita. Cited by permission of the author.

2 Jen-min Jih-pao (People's Daily), July 7, 1964, transl. in Current Background (CB) (Hong Kong: U.S. Consulate-General), No. 738 (07 30, 1964), p. 18Google Scholar.

3 China News Analysis (CNA), No. 521 (06 19, 1964), p. 6Google Scholar.

4 Figures through 1957 are from Pringsheim, Klaus H., “The Functions of the Chinese Communist Youth Leagues (1920–1949),” The China Quarterly, No. 12 (10–12 1962), pp. 90–91CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

5 CNA, No. 292 (09 11, 1959), p. 2Google Scholar;MacFarquhar, Roderick, The Hundred Flowers Campaign and the Chinese Intellectuals (New York: Praeger, 1960), pp. 171–173Google Scholar.

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9 CNA, 617 (06 24, 1966), p. 3Google Scholar, and 633 (October 21, 1966), pp. 5–6.

10 Tokyo Shimbun, December 21, 1966, transl. in Daily Summary of Japanese Press (hereafter DSJP), December 28, p. 20.

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12 Interview with Morris Wills, Cambridge, Mass., January 1966.

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14 People's Daily, April 26, 1957.

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18 Yang-ch'eng Wan-pao, June 24, 1966, cited in SCMP, No. 3470 (July 1), p. 16.

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22 Hsinhua News Agency Release, June 20, 1966.

23 Hsinhua News Agency Release, June 19, 1966.

24 Statement made to a visiting group of Japanese, October 7, 1966, reported in Asahi, October 9, transl. in DSJP, October 8–11, p. 6.

25 People's Daily editorial, June 18, 1966, transl. in Hsinhua News Agency Release, June 19.

24 The fact that middle school students were chosen for this role also reflected a widely-held belief that university students were unreliable. As one high official expressed it, “The state educates youths at primary schools and middle schools, spending much money on them, and when they proceed to universities, they are completely corrupted.…” See Sankei, evening, November 9, 1966, transl. in DSJP, November 15, p. 9. The Japanese correspondent who filed the report from Peking did not reveal the official's name; it seems improbable that it wasReagan, Ronald. The Free China Weekly, 02 3, 1967, p. 4Google Scholar, reports that Chou Pai-yun, a former Red Guard now on Formosa, estimates the percentage of students who support Mao as “ 100 in primary schools, 60 in junior high schools, 30 in senior high schools and none in college.” Though exaggerated, this does reflect the scepticism of college students.

27 Udai, Fukishima in the Asahi Journal, 10 16, 1966Google Scholar, transl. in SSJM, October 31 pp. 74–75.

28 Ibid. p. 76; Malnichi, evening, September 26, 1966, transl. in DSJP, September 28, p. 9 ; “Foreign Expert,”“Eyewitness of the Cultural Revolution,” The China Quarterly, No. 28 (10–12, 1966), p. 3Google Scholar.

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32 Mainichi, September 10, 1966, transl. in DSJP, September 10–12, p. 36;

33 Mainichi, September 18, transl. in DSJP, September 20, p. 7; Sankei, evening, September 29, transl. in DSJP, September 30, p. 31; Mainichi, October 30, transl. in DSJP, November 1, p. 6.

34 Nihon Keizai, January 5, 1966, transl. in DSJP, January 6, p. 21.

35 Sanket, August 28, 1966, transl. in DSJP, September 1, p. 18; Tokyo Shimbun, September 12, transl. in DSJP, September 10–12, p. 44; Matsuno Tanio in Sekal, November, 1966, transl. in SSJM, October 31, p. 37; Mainichi, evening, December 28, transl. in DSJP, January 13, p. 24.

36 Chang-ling, Wang, “Peiping's ‘Great Cultural Revolution’ and the ‘Red Guards’,” Issues and Studies, III, 2 (11 1966), p. 20Google Scholar.

37 Hsinhua News Agency Release, August 19, 1966.

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39 Durdin, Tillman, in New York Times, 03 5, 1967Google Scholar.

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43 Asahi, January 9, 1967, transl. in DSJP, January 10, p. 6. Versions in other Japanese Newspapers differ in some details. Yomiuri, January 8, and Tokyo Shimbun, January 9, transl. in DSJP, January 10, pp. 6 and 10, say “ 13,700 rifles and pistols, 13,800 spears,” but fail to mention Chiang's portraits and Kuomintang flags. The Yomiuri adds that “land owners, rich farmers, reactionary elements, capitalists, etc., and their families—approximately 400,000 persons”—were expelled.

44 “Foreign Expert,” op. cit., p. 4.

45 Ch'ao-t'ien, Wang, op. cit., p. 10Google Scholar; , U.S.News and World Report, LXII, 5 (01 30, 1967), p. 57Google Scholar.

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51 DSJP, September 29, 1966, p. 3, October 12, p. 22; SSJM, October 31, p. 74, November 21, p. 26; November 14, p. 33;WangCh'ao-t'ien, pp. 3, 9.

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54 Asahi, September 10, 1966, Mainichl, September 10, transl. in DSJP, September 10–12, pp. 25 and 42.

55 Nihon Keizai, December 16, 1966, transl. in DSJP, December 17–19, p. 7. In subsequent weeks T'ao Chu became a prime target of militants aligned with Ch'en and Chiang.

56 Red Flag, September 17, 1966, transl. in SCMM, No. 544 (October 3), p. 14.

57 People's Daily, September 7, 1966, transl. in SCMP, No. 3779 (September 13), p. 3;Hong Kong, Ta-kung pao, 09 17, 1966Google ScholarPubMed, transl. in SCMP, No. 3785 (September 21), pp. 4–5.

58 Teh-ling, Kung, “‘Development of the Chinese Communist Great Cultural Revolution’,” Issues and Studies, III, 4 (01 1967), p. 25Google Scholar.

59 Mainichi, December 19, 1966, transl. in DSJP, December 17–19, p. 19.

60 Mainichi, February 7, 1967, cited in New York Times, February 8. Chou En-lai reportedly was astounded at the hundreds of thousands who marched to Peking, far excelling the original estimate of 200,000. See Yomiuri, January 15, 1967, transl. in DSJP, January 17, p. 13.

61 Ch-ao-t'ien, Wang, op. cit., p. 49Google Scholar.

62 Sankei, evening, September 29, 1966, transl. in DSJP, September 30, pp. 33–34.

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64 Nihon Keizai, evening, January 7, 1967, transl. in DSJP, January 11, p. 10.

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66 DSJP, December 23, 1966, p. 18; December 28, p. 2; December 29, p. 2; December 31, 1966–January 5, 1967, pp. 6–7; January 6, p. 32; January 11, p. 29; January 12, p. 5.

67 DSJP, October 13, 1966, p. 16; October 27, p. 27; November 26–28, p. 9; December 17–19, p. 14; December 28, p. 9.

68 See Tung-fang Hung ( The East is Red, organ of the reorganised Second Headquarters), No. 18, 01 31, 1967Google Scholar; also Mainichi, December 28, 1966; Asahi, December 28, transl. in DSJP, December 28, pp. 9, 24; Sankei, December 31, transl. in DSJP, December 31, 1966–January 1, 1967, p. 23; Sankei, January 7, transl. in DSJP, January 11, p. 4.

69 New York Times, February 9, 1967; Tung-fang Hung, No. 18, January 31 (see note 68); Tung-fang Hung (another publication of the same title, edited by the Tung-fang Hung Commune of the Peking Mining School), No. 5, January 28, 1967; Chan Poo (The War Paper, publ. by the Arrangements Bureau to Struggle against the Counter-Revolutionary Revisionist Clique of P'eng, Lu, Lo, and Yang), No. 3, January 19, 1967; and Tsao-fan (Rebellion, publ. by the Shanghai Publishing System's Revolutionary Rebel Headquarters), special issue No. 2, January 15, 1967.

70 Kyodo, November 4, 1966, transl. in DSJP, November 5–7, pp. 22–23; Sankei, November 23, transl. in DSJP, November 26–28, p. 18.

71 Mainichi, January 9, 1967, transl. in DSJP, January 10, p. 2.

72 Tokyo Shimbun, September 10, 1966, transl. in DSJP, September 10–12, p. 42; New York Times, February 17, 1967.

73 Ch'ao-t'ien, Wang, op. cit., p. 23Google Scholar; Strong, Anna Louise, Letter from China, No. 46, 01 19, 1967, p. 2Google Scholar.

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75 Sankei, January 17, 1967, transl. in DSJP, January 17.

76 Tokyo Keizai, October 15, 1966, transl. in SSJM, November 21, p. 27.

77 Wen-hui pao, January 24, 1967, cited inCNA, No. 653 (03 31, 1967), p. 2Google Scholar.

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79 Yomiuri, December 31, 1966, transl. in DSJP, December 31, 1966–January 5, 1967, p. 16.

80 Asahi, January 13, 1967, transl. in DSJP, January 13, p. 32. The quotation is from Asahi's wording, not necessarily that of the original regulations.

81 Sankei, September 29, 1966, transl. in DSJP, September 30, p. 32; Mainichi, October 12, transl. in DSJP, October 13, p. 8. See also Tokyo Shimbun, evening, September 14, transl. in DSJP, September 17–19, p. 7.

82 Radio Sofia, March 21, 1967.

83 New York Times, March 5, 1967.

84 Yomiuri, February 21, 1967, in DSJP, February 21, p. 29.

85 Radio Peking, March 2, 1967.

86 Ibid.; emphasis is my own.

87 People's Daily, March 2, 1967.

88 Asahi, March 10, 1967.

89 Radio Tokyo, March 6, 1967.

90 Radio Peking, March 26, 1967.

91 Yomiuri, February 9, 1967, Kyodo, February 13.

92 New China News Agency broadcast, March 6, 1967; People's Daily editorial, March 7.

93 Mainichi, March 12, 1967.

94 The strategy was similar to that adopted by the CCP at various junctures in the pre-1949 revolution when “objective conditions” made it impossible to continue nationwide student movements. For example, in December 1931, after the failure to turn an anti-Japanese movement into a revolution against Nanking, the CCP ordered its cadres to carry the revolution into the schools. The result was a four-year period of watching and waiting until conditions favoured a revival of nationwide activity.

95 Fairbank, John K., “Is History Repeating Itself?” The New Republic, 02 25, 1967, p. 13Google Scholar.

96 Laqueur, Walter Z., Young Germany (New York: Basic Books, 1962), p. 195Google Scholar.

97 Ibid. p. 208.

98 The Red Guard vendetta against bourgeois hairdos is but the latest example of a historical correlation between hair styles and politics. Modern China provides precedents in the long-haired Taiping rebels, and the revolutionary queue-clipping of the 1911 period, as well as the bobbed hair of female anti-traditionalists in the 1920s. However, preoccupation with hair is not peculiarly Chinese, witness the international uproar over the “Beatle” style. Japanese visitors to China recall harassments of Western-garbed-and-coiffeured citizens in wartime Japan. See Mainichi, August 28, 1966, transl. in DSJP, September 7, p. 13.

99 Those who recall Berkeley in 1964–65 will note a similarity to the attitudes of a small group of American students.

100 Stalin's Failure in China (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1958), p. 128Google Scholar.

101 For a detailed treatment of this episode, seeIsrael, John, Student Nationalism in China, 1927–1937 (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1966), chapter 3, pp. 47–86Google Scholar.

102 Peking Review, X, 1 (01 1, 1967), pp. 3–4Google Scholar, said that eleven million students and teachers had come to the capital during the previous few months, with more than three million in town at the peak.

103 See Lipset, Seymour Martin, “Beyond the Backlash,” Encounter, XXIII, 5 (11, 1964), pp. 11–24Google Scholar.

104 Schurmann, , op. cit., pp. 51–52Google Scholar.

105 Wills, manuscript.

106 Schumann, , op. cit., pp. 8, 51Google Scholar.

107 Kyodo release, in Tokyo Shimbun, October 27, 1966, transl. in DSJP, October 27, pp. 15–16.

108 Radio Peking, March 2, 1967.