Communism in China

1. Communism in China • Rise of Mao Zedong • Chinese Civil War • Life Under Mao • The Great Leap Forward • Cultural Revolution • Tiananmen Square

2. The Rise of Mao Zedong • Mao Zedong was a Communist organizer and a member of the Chinese Communist Party • Mao first had to defeat the Nationalists, using the peasants’ huge population as an advantage. • During the Long March, an estimated 81,000 out of 90,000 people died while walking 6,000 miles to the last surviving Communist Base in southern China. • During the course of the Long March, Mao established himself unquestionably as the leader of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) • He held his title his whole life.

3. Chinese Civil War • Cause: • The war occurred because the Chinese Nationalists (led by Chiang Kai-shek) and the Chinese Communists (led by Mao Zedong) were competing for power • The war between the two groups began in 1945

4. Chinese Civil War • Outcome: • Communists won over millions of peasants by promising them land • Numerous people joined Mao’s People’s Liberation Army • Nationalists lost to the Communists in 1949 • People’s Republic of China was ruled by the Communist Party • Chiang Kai-shek and 2 million Nationalists retreated to Taiwan and established the Republic of China

5. Life Under Mao • Launched a program in 1955 in order to form a socialist society • Took land from wealthy landlords and gave it to two-thirds of the peasants in hopes that food production would increase, which ended up not happening • He took collective farms and combined them into communes, that contained 30,000 people who lived and worked together

6. Great Leap Forward • It was a radical program that began in 1958 • Mao Zedong started it in hopes to speed up economic growth • He took collective farms and combined them into communes, that contained 30,000 people who lived and worked together • His goal was to reach the final stage of communism – a classless society • One of Mao’s campaigning slogans was: • “Hard work for a few years, happiness for a thousand” • The Great Leap Forward was a disaster • The food production went down because of bad weather and bad planning • 16 million citizens starved to death • Two years later, in 1960, the Chinese Government broke down the communes

7. The Cultural Revolution • Mao still wanted a classless society • Only a permanent and constant revolution could make this happen • In 1966 The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution began • Little Red Book was a book of Mao Zedong’s thoughts • Thought of as a bible and ultimate source of knowledge

8. The Cultural Revolution Continued • Red Guards were formed • Bands of mostly student and teenage revolutionaries • Wanted to get rid of the “Four Olds” • Old ideas • Old cultures • Old customs • Old habits • Destroyed books that were written by foreigners, foreign music, and temples • Renamed the streets so that they sounded more revolutionary • Brutally attacked people who “deviated” from Mao’s plan

9. Cultural Revolution Continued • Many people including party members, professionals, and military officers went against the Red Guards because they were repulsed by the Red Guard’s actions • Mao reined in the Red Guards and got tired of their actions • Deng Xiaoping gained power after Zedong’s death • Brought the Cultural Revolution to an end

10. Tiananmen Square • Located in the capital of Beijing • Massive demonstrations were held there • The death of Hu Yaobang, a pro-democracy pro-market official, sparked these protests. • Over 100,000 spectators showed up to Yaobang’s funeral on April 15, 1989 • The movement lasted seven weeks, until Deng Xiaoping ended it on June 4 • Xiaoping believed that protesters were calling for the end of communist square • He ordered tanks and troops to get rid of the protesters • Between 500 and 2,000 people were killed • By the late 1990’s: • Protested against • Chinese citizens had high taxes • A classless society was never achieved, and there was major economic and social inequality

12. Analyze & Discuss

13. By: Rachel Furcick Nikol Grbic Max Mercado Steven Momi