By Daniel Archibald
Hong Kong seems to be at the front of an intense battle between democracy and authoritarianism. The president of China Xi (Jinping) even declared himself president for life. The university and school students of China are also realizing that Hong Kong is right and are fighting for it too. What's the history behind this?
Hong Kong was always a part of China, but tensions began to rise when an imperial edict banned the British trade in opium from India to China. In reparation, China gave Hong Kong to Britain in 1851. Hong Kong's economy was thriving during this time under British rule, but in 1997 the lease ran out and Hong Kong was given back to China.
This exchange soon sparked conflict, and relations have slowly gotten worse. To combat the rising dissent, China began strengthening their grip on Hong Kong. In 2014, protests started, marking the turning point from complaints to violence. Though the participants were entirely peaceful, according to The Guardian, police brutality set in.
To stop these protests, police began to appear in full riot gear with tear gas. As events escalated, protesters threw Molotov cocktails and built barriers. An 18-year-old high school student was shot in the chest. There is was even a video posted by University of Hong Kong students which shows police shooting someone at point blank range as protesters attack another officer. Protesters attacked a policemen on the ground and another officer fired at them. In the United States, a bill was just brought to Trump's desk, passed by the Senate, to support Hong Kong.