Hong Kong protesters echo historic cry for freedom

Protesters in Hong Kong have marched through the streets, occupied the airport, and stormed a government building in recent weeks, but they adopted a new tactic Friday. The pro-democracy demonstrators formed a human chain through the city’s streets and along the waterfront in a plea for freedom and international support similar to a protest in the Baltic states 30 years ago Friday. Nearly 2 million Latvians, Lithuanians, and Estonians formed a human chain more than 370 miles long on Aug. 23, 1989, to protest Soviet rule.

Are the Hong Kong protests working? Countries such as Canada, Britain, and the United States have expressed concern for the well-being of protesters, who have complained about police use of tear gas, rubber bullets, and bean bag rounds. U.S. President Donald Trump urged Chinese President Xi Jinping to “quickly and humanely” resolve the conflict. Most international leaders have stopped short of backing the protest movement, and China is using an aggressive propaganda campaign to depict protesters as criminals and terrorists.

Dig deeper: Read Erica Kwong and June Cheng’s latest report from Hong Kong.