On the evening of June 3, hundreds of people gathered at Portsmouth Square in San Francisco to hold a candlelight vigil in memory of the pro-democracy movement that occurred in China 36 years ago.

On June 4, 1989, in what is now known as the Tiananmen Square Massacre, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) deployed large numbers of troops and tanks to violently suppress students who were participating in pro-democracy protests at Tiananmen Square. The communist regime subsequently covered up the number of deaths and injuries.

Numerous photos, videos, and written records show that there may have been thousands of casualties on that day, but the actual death toll remains unknown.

The candlelight vigil was organized by the Chinese Democratic Education Foundation, a San Francisco-based NGO. The foundation’s president, Feng Congde, who was one of the main student leaders of the pro-democracy movement in 1989, was the first to speak at the gathering.

He said that even after 36 years, people must not forget those who gave their lives in support of the students’ pro-democracy ideals.

Feng read aloud the names of 24 civilians who were publicly executed by the CCP after June 4, 1989, for their support of the student movement. He said the Chinese authorities convicted them on charges of “counterrevolutionary riot.”

He mentioned that the Chinese people’s pursuit of democracy and freedom has a history of more than 100 years. The Republic of China (ROC), which lives on today as Taiwan, once existed on the mainland for nearly 38 years.

“What we must carry forward and complete is this century-long, heroic Chinese democratic revolution,” Feng said.

The ROC was established in 1912. It lost a civil war to the CCP and moved to Taiwan in 1949.

After the 1989 crackdown, Feng was one of the 21 student leaders placed on the CCP’s most-wanted list.

Fang Zheng, who lost both legs when he was run over by a CCP tank during the massacre, also spoke at the event.

“I’m a survivor of that massacre,” he said. “Tonight’s gathering brings me back to that moment 36 years ago when my legs were crushed by a tank.”

Fang said that many of the movement’s witnesses and participants are no longer alive, and the truth about the massacre remains hidden by the Chinese regime to this day.

At Fang’s suggestion, the crowd observed a minute of silence to honor those who lost their lives during and after the Tiananmen incident.

Former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a long-time supporter of China’s pro-democracy movement, sent a letter of solidarity for the vigil.

In her letter, Pelosi wrote that over the three decades since the Tiananmen Massacre, “the Chinese Communist Party has only accelerated its campaign of atrocities: jailing dissidents who dare to speak out, committing genocide against the Uyghur community, the assault of religion, language, and culture in Tibet, the baseless persecution of democracy advocates in Hong Kong, and many more abuses nationwide.”

“At the same time, we see their threats to global security in the South China Sea and increased aggression against Taiwan,” she wrote. “Beijing’s tanks and troops may have crushed the demonstrations 35 years ago, but they could not silence the demands for dignity and democracy that have echoed ever since.”

Hundreds of people gather at Portsmouth Square in San Francisco on June 3, 2025, to attend a candlelight vigil in memory of the Tiananmen Square Massacre victims. (Nathan Su/The Epoch Times)

Kenneth Lee, a representative of Hongkongers in the Bay Area, said in a speech: “For 36 years, the Chinese Communist Party has tried to convince the world that nothing happened on that day, but we remember. ... We remember the loss—the children who never came home, the screams in the dark, and the silence that followed. ... Let us be their voice. Together, there is a light that never goes out.”

Tenzin Pema, speaking on behalf of the San Francisco Regional Tibetan Youth Congress, stated: “Tibetan people inside Tibet faced cultural genocide, economic marginalization, environmental destruction, and the erosion of religious freedom. ... More than 150 Tibetan people set themselves on fire inside Tibet to protest against the repressive Chinese illegal occupation. ... Thousands of Tibetan monasteries were demolished, and monks and nuns were disrobed.”

Ginger Duan, head of the Star Shiner, a Northern California-based organization, helped coordinate publicity for the vigil.

In her remarks, she said, “We are the orphans of Tiananmen Square, and we are also the displaced Hongkongers, the oppressed Uyghurs, and the Tibetans who self-immolated in flames.”

She encouraged more people to join the movement, collaborate, and take concrete action for freedom in China—becoming doers, not just dreamers.

Zheng Yun, a board member of the Liberty Sculpture Park in Southern California and one of the event organizers, told The Epoch Times that this year’s vigil was different from past years in that it drew a much larger crowd.

“There are many young people born in the 1990s and even 2000s. These young people are free from old mindsets, have strong motivation, and work highly [effectively],” she said.

Fang Zheng, a pro-democracy activist whose legs were crushed by a Chinese military tank during the Tiananmen Square Massacre, attends the candlelight vigil in Portsmouth Square in San Francisco on June 3, 2025. (Nathan Su/The Epoch Times)

Miao Qing, a member of the China Democracy Party’s San Francisco branch, who arrived in the United States just this February, told The Epoch Times that the June 4 commemoration should serve as a unifying platform for all groups persecuted by the CCP, such as Tibetans, Uyghurs, and Hongkongers.

“Under the banner of anti-communism, we can work together in solidarity,” he said.

Banners at the candlelight vigil in Portsmouth Square in San Francisco on June 3, 2025. (Nathan Su/The Epoch Times)

Musician Yu Bo performed a new song titled “The Undying Light,” composed specifically to commemorate the 1989 events.

The lyrics include: “Truth will never fade or be forgotten. ... One day, the dream will awaken, the sky will brighten, and we will embrace freedom in the light.”

In the evening, participants chanted slogans such as “Free Uyghurs,” “Free Tibet,” “Free Hong Kong,” and “Free China.”