BRING YOUR UMBRELLA: HONG KONG'S LATEST PROTESTS IN PHOTOS

Hong Kong protesters took to the streets last weekend, culminating in an estimated 1.8 million person protest on Sunday afternoon. Though the world was expecting violence, the protestors ultimately showed restraint. This is seen as a move that empowers the protestors over the police, who have demonstrated consistent violence and overuse of force. 

Photos from Friday to Sunday night show how a potentially fatal weekend ended with a sense of pride and unity for the protestors. What this means for next weekend’s protests is uncertain. But what is evident is that Hong Kong refuses to quit.

A protestor waves the American flag as the Star Spangled Banner plays on repeat through loud speakers after Friday’s demonstration at Charter Garden. America is a country a lot of the protesters are trying to gain recognition from, much to the fury of online communists watching the protests from afar. 

A young protestor stands ready outside of Mong Kok Police station on Saturday night.

Protestors quickly and efficiently obstruct cameras as they prepare outside Mong Kok Station. Many of these students grew up with protests in Hong Kong and are in some ways veterans of street politics.

Police prepare themselves for the protest at Mong Kok Station, facing thousands of protestors who scream and throw eggs from across the street.

Police march down Nathan Road from Mong Kok station to disperse protestors.

Policeman leading his forces straight down Nathan Road--one of the largest streets in Kowloon.

Police begin chasing protestors at full sprint down Nathan Road. The police were successfully able to disperse thousands of protestors. The police are also no rookies when it comes to street politics in Hong Kong.

Protestors march in droves from Victoria Park to Hong Kong Park on Saturday afternoon, through consistent rain that lasted into the night.

Umbrellas are a symbol of resistance and unity for Hong Kong protestors, and with the rain on Saturday, the symbol could not be any clearer.

After the demonstration from Victoria Park to Hong Kong Park, many protestors congregated outside Admiralty station near the Legislative Council Building to protest until midnight.

Protestors outside of Admiralty station checking to see if the police are coming to disperse them. Police are frequently referred to as "Gestapo" or "Nazis" by the protestors.

Since the arrest of a young president of a student union for possession of 10 laser pens, protestors have used them as a symbol of resistance as well as a tool that can obstruct the vision of the police and, in some cases, allegedly destroy the sensors in security cameras in the city.

Though Sunday was a surprisingly peaceful night, one protestor was confused by other protestors to be a police infiltrator and was beaten up by a small group--a sign that protestors are very frightened, angered, and somewhat paranoid by police tactics in Hong Kong.

For no other reason than its pop culture prominence, Pepe the frog has become a symbol of the rally through various graffiti art.

Another Pepe, this one cheering the protestors on with the phrase “Hong Kong add oil” written next to him. “Add oil” is a Cantonese phrase commonly used to encourage or cheer someone on.


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