Revisit one of the most monumental moments in Hong Kong's history

It was a summer like no other. There were fiery rallies, mass strikes, sudden curfews, ‘white-skinned pigs’ and ‘yellow running dogs’ in riot gear, as well as thousands of home-made ‘pineapples’ on the streets as Hong Kong fell into months of fear and violence. These potent images have seared into the collective memory of those who lived through the tumultuous days of 1967 when this city, frustrated with the British colonial government’s indifference to the welfare needs of the population, got caught in a spill-over from the Cultural Revolution in mainland China.

Although the 1967 anti-colonial riots happened nearly half a century ago, its historical legacy can still very much be felt today; take note of the anti-extradition protests that occurred since summer 2019.

Join this specially designed walk, expertly designed by political scientist Professor Ray Yep, to relive this key episode in Hong Kong’s colonial history.

Highlights of the Tour

• Relive some of the most dramatic moments of summer 1967 at key sites in North Point
• Explain how a relatively small industrial dispute in May 1967 turned into huge riots that rocked Hong Kong to the core;
• Show how a local department store, a theatre, schools and other hidden essential services created a self-sustainable world for pro-China leftists in Hong Kong and provided mass support for the riots
• Chart how the riots became a turning point in the beleaguered colonial governance of Hong Kong, and discuss why the events are still important to the city today.

Expert guide bio

Professor Ray Yep is currently Research Director of the Centre for the Study of Hong Kong History at the University of Bristol. His current research interest lies in late colonial governance of Hong Kong, and had published extensively on the 1967 disturbances and its implications, including the monograph May Days in Hong Kong: Riot and Emergency in 1967 (co-edited with Robert Bickers) published by HKU Press in 2009. A political scientist by training, he worked in Department of Public and International Affairs of City University of Hong Kong for 25 years before moving to Bristol, and was its Associate Head between 2012 and 2019.