After writing my term-paper (which is available for anyone who wants to read it) I have come to the conclusion that the Chinese government still has a strong hold on media, education, and entertainment. The Cultural Revolution is not lectured on in schools…this includes Universities where intellectual thougth is supposed to be encouraged and free. However this is not the case…there no classes dedicated to the CR…there arent even references to it in textbooks. It’s not mentioned in the news, in books, or even at home. People who do wish to talk about it (in other people’s books) either give a psuedonym or no name at all. Most children aren’t even sure about what he CR was. They know it was bad…but thats about it. Some hear stories from parents or grandparents, but even that is very hush-hush.
Most of the blame for teh CR is put on Maos wife and his senior officers. While it is understood that Mao was in charge at the time, most Communist officials point to all the good that Mao has done for teh country…30bad but 70 good.
In 2005 a museum dedicated to the CR was opened. While it was recieved international acclaim, the majority of the people who go and see it are surivors of the revolution…not children. Furthmore, the government has limited publicity to the museum, hurting attendence even further.
This would be like the US ignoring or trying forget about the Civil War(1861-65) , Slavery (1503-1865), or the Civil Rights movement…its on that level. The thing is…China is doing a good job at it.
