(Photo by Isaac Lawrence/AFP Getty Images)
In the above photo, taken last September, pro-democracy activists remain stalwart against police water cannons in Hong Kong. The protester at the center of the photo stands in a defiant salute, unrelenting, uncompromising, surrounded by fellow protesters shielding themselves with umbrellas.
The use of the umbrella is no accident—it has been a symbol of resistance in Hong Kong’s fight for democracy, since the pro-democracy protests of 2014, now known as the Umbrella Movement. The Hong Kong police have since classified the umbrella as a weapon.
The instrument has many functions in protest: shielding protesters from police water cannons and tear gas; providing cover for protesters’ faces, since marching and protesting are illegal; and being wielded as a baton or held as a poniard for attack.
Democracy is not a self-sustaining system but requires ethical vigilance and determination. As both a symbol and a tool, the umbrella serves as a cunning accomplice in the fight and demonstrates the protesters’ fortitude and ingenuity.
Read more stories by Marcie Bianco.