The wind of “red culture” is blowing strong in China as since early this year, the mainland’s state media has been vigorously promoting a revival of Maoist era culture, including songs, literature, art, films and celebrations of revolutionary icons. ...
In broad terms, China’s “Red Culture” push is linked to the 90th anniversary of the founding of the CCP. At the request of the Propaganda Department of the CCP, newspapers throughout the mainland unanimously printed events and stories about figures in the revolutionary era.
At the same time, governments of all levels, schools and business enterprises have been sponsoring a series of celebrations, including singing red songs, watching red movies and essay competitions.
The commercial sector has also seized on the trend with many companies rushing to promote the sale of Mao suits, his little red book Quotations from Mao Zedong and other nostalgic items.
Rather than being a propaganda campaign in support of a specific project, it is just a "feel good about Communist rule" campaign. With the ironic twist that the private sector is jumping on the campaign to make money.
But getting people to feel trendy with Red clothing and commie catch phrases will get the rulers nowhere. Plenty of Westerners wear "Che" shirts and mouth Marxist platitudes without being anything more than clueless. They aren't about to head off into the bush to wage an insurgency. And they'd be upset with a government that tried to order them about (as opposed to ordering about others who aren't living the right way).
So perhaps this campaign will just be a reminder that despite all the economic progress (which may be fragile), the people still don't have much of a say in how they are governed. You have to admit that it would be pretty funny if a mob of young people wearing Mao t-shirts stormed the capital--with their fellow age cohorts in the army right beside them--and brought down the system.
