1989 – The Tank Man halts the progress of a column of advancing tanks for over half an hour after the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. Tank Man, also known as the Unknown Protester or the Unknown Rebel, was an unidentified individual, likely a Chinese man, who stood in front of a column of Type 59 tanks on Chang’an Avenue near Tiananmen Square in Beijing on June 5, 1989. This confrontation took place one day after the Chinese government forcibly cleared the square following six weeks of pro-democracy demonstrations. The clearing resulted in the deaths of hundreds of people, primarily in the areas surrounding the square. On the morning of June 5th, a long column of tanks proceeded east along Chang’an Avenue after the military’s clearing operations. A lone man carrying shopping bags stepped into the path of the lead tank and refused to move. When the tank attempted to maneuver around him, he repeatedly shifted positions to block its path. Surprisingly, the tanks came to a complete stop rather than run him over. The man then climbed onto the lead tank, where he appeared to converse with members of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) inside before returning to the road.
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