U.S. lawmakers are introducing legislation to rename the street outside the Chinese Embassy in Washington in memory of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, a bloody chapter the communist regime has continuously tried to erase.
Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) and Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) are introducing the companion bills on June 4 to mark the 37th anniversary of the tragedy.
The proposal would officially change the embassyβs address from 3505 International Place NW to 1 Tiananmen Square Memorial Boulevard.
If enacted, a new street sign would be installed in front of the diplomatic outpost, and all official maps and government records would be updated to reflect the designation.
Scott stated the legislation aims to condemn the Chinese Communist Partyβs (CCP) heinous human rights abuses and honor the countless peaceful demonstrators murdered in cold blood for opposing the regime.
Ogles echoed these sentiments, denouncing the regime as "immoral" and "genocidal" while emphasizing that America must not let the CCP succeed in scrubbing this atrocity from history.
On the night of June 3, 1989, the CCP deployed troops and tanks to violently crush weeks of student-led pro-democracy protests in Beijing, resulting in the deaths of hundreds, possibly thousands, of unarmed civilians.
To this day, Beijing refuses to disclose the death toll, heavily surveils victims' families, and strictly censors any domestic mention of the massacre.
The crackdown on remembrance continues today, with dissidents and activists in mainland China reporting tight police surveillance and warnings against public gatherings ahead of the anniversary.
In Hong Kong, authorities have used the 2020 national security law to permanently shut down the city's massive annual candlelight vigils and arrest key organizers.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a statement honoring the victims, declaring that "no amount of censorship can erase the past" and that those who sacrificed for free expression will someday be vindicated.
Renaming embassy addresses has been utilized before to protest foreign governments; in 2022, the street in front of the Saudi Embassy in Washington was renamed to honor murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi with a memorial that local officials noted "cannot be covered up or repressed."
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