1989 Tiananmen Square protests The nomenclature of the former is consistent with the customary names of the other two great protests that occurred in Tiananmen Square: the May Fourth Movement of 1919 and the April Fifth Movement of 1976. June Fourth refers to the day on which the People's Liberation Army cleared Tiananmen Square of protesters, although actual operations began on the evening of 4 June. Names such as June Fourth Movement (Chinese: , "liù-sì yùndòng") and '89 Democracy Movement (Chinese: , "bā-jiǔ mínyùn") are used to describe the event in its entirety. Outside mainland China, and among circles critical of the crackdown within
1989 Tiananmen Square protests fled in panic. An ambulance that was arriving was also caught in the gunfire. The crowd tried several more times but could not enter the Square, which remained closed to the public for two weeks. On 5 June, suppression of the protest was immortalized in Western media by the famous video footage and photographs of a lone man standing in front of a column of tanks driving out of Tiananmen Square. The iconic photo that would eventually make its way around the world was taken on 5 June on Chang'an Avenue. As the tank driver tried to go around him,