On the afternoon of August 1, the New School for Democracy screened Inside the Red Brick Wall in Taichung. Joining the post-screening discussion were Tsai Chih-hao (蔡智豪), a Hong Kong activist who provided online logistical support during the siege of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and is now a project manager at the association, and “Tuanzhang,” an activist who lived through the siege itself. Together with the audience they looked back at the 2019 siege of PolyU, and used the film and the conversation around it to think again about what freedom, human rights and democracy mean.
Inside the Red Brick Wall is built from footage shot on the front line, recording conditions inside the university while it was surrounded by police and showing the choices protesters faced amid the blockade, the confrontation and the uncertainty. It stands as an important historical record of Hong Kong’s democracy movement. The film bears witness not only to a social movement but to how authoritarian repression shapes a generation, and how people work to hold on to their convictions under duress.
In the discussion, both speakers drew on their own experience, describing the escapes and rescue efforts during the siege and reflecting on protest, freedom and the choices it forces. They also spoke with the audience about how Hong Kong has changed in recent years, and about why they continue to record and share this history after going into exile in Taiwan — helping the audience better understand Hong Kong’s situation, and reminding everyone that democracy and freedom are never a given.
Closing the discussion, Tsai Chih-hao spoke about his own state of mind since arriving in Taiwan. Taiwan and Hong Kong, he said, face the same pressure and threat from China, and continuing to tell Hong Kong’s story and to advocate for freedom and democracy is both a record of the past and a responsibility towards the future — so that the memory of Hong Kong’s protesters continues to be kept.
Our thanks to the Hao Min Cultural Action Association for co-organizing, and to everyone who came to the screening and the discussion. We will go on using screenings to invite people to engage with democracy, human rights and historical memory, so that more stories worth seeing continue to be told.