CNN 's Steven Jiang recalls his time as a student in Shanghai during the Tiananmen crackdown . By mid-May , the movement had become a nationwide phenomenon as people -- students , workers and intellectuals , united by their grievances against inflation and corruption -- The students were not allowed to leave their dormitories for several days, and they had no access to telephones or Internet. Chinese government has made strenuous efforts to erase the period from national consciousness . Officials continue to suppress all mention of events in 1989 by censorship of media , Internet .
CNN 's Steven Jiang recalls his time as a student in Shanghai during the Tiananmen crackdown . The students were not allowed to leave their dormitories for several days, and they had no access to telephones or Internet. Chinese government has made strenuous efforts to erase the period from national consciousness . Officials continue to suppress all mention of events in 1989 by censorship of media , Internet .