When Autocratic Rule is Shoved in Your Face

Karen Cheung, a Hong Kong native who still lives there, wrote a lovely essay –– it appeared in last night’s online New York Times ––about what it’s like to live in a densely populated urban community with a tradition of independence and self-governing that overnight becomes fully subjected to repressive autocratic rule, which is what happened to that great city-state on July 1. Cheung’s article isn’t bitter or complaining. It’s a testament to the human spirit, a declaration of her refusal to relinquish joy in living.