This Day in 1989: May 10, Students Launch Bicycle Rally

The public petition and protest by young journalists continued to receive attention just as the student movement itself was in a somewhat hiatus. On May 10, 1989, several official newspapers, including the flagship People's Daily, reported the news of petition. In this morning, tens of thousands of college students rode through the city in their bicycles in an unusual form of demonstration to show their support and solidarity with the journalists.

Many famous authors in Beijing also participated in the demonstration on this day, a first for the normally dormant community. Zheng Yi was busy organizing his fellow intellectuals. At People's University that evening, Dai Qing and Bao Zunxin delivered rousing speeches in praise of the students demonstration on April 27.

Within the government, the Chairman of the National People's Congress Standing Committee Wan Li announced that a regular meeting of his committee will commerce on June 20. The agenda of that meeting would include a hearing on the student demonstration and class strike as well as an evaluation of a draft demonstration law.


Days of 1989