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In China, young women become accidental symbols of defiance

11 min read . Updated: 27 Jan 2023, 12:10 AM IST Shen Lu, The Wall Street Journal

A sustained crackdown on activists gained momentum with the 2015 arrest of women who became known as the Feminist Five. (Photo: Reuters) — A sustained crackdown on activists gained momentum with the 2015 arrest of women who became known as the Feminist Five. **(Photo: Reuters)**

A new generation of novice dissidents—many artists and writers—arrested after demonstrations against pandemic lockdowns is fueled by anger over a clampdown on freedoms and attacks on women’s rights

Late on Nov. 27, book editor Cao Zhixin, who was about to turn 26 years old, joined a protest near Beijing’s embassy district with a few of her friends. It was a spur-of-the-moment decision that accidentally made them symbols of the most public display of defiance in a generation—as well as the state’s forceful response.