6. China’s Communist Party tried to suppress New Year celebrations.
China’s new republican government adopted the Western-style Gregorian calendar in 1912 and changed the official name of Chinese New Year to Spring Festival. The Communist Party under Mao Zedong, which took power in 1949, then tried to do-away with all aspects of the holiday that it considered religious, feudalistic or superstitious. Throughout the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), the Communists even cracked down on lion and dragon dances, along with traditional greetings. “Sometimes very minor things could invite big trouble for you and your family,” Li said. Chinese New Year was reappraised, however, during the period of economic liberalization that followed Mao’s death. Since 1996, it has been designated a weeklong vacation.
China’s new republican government adopted the Western-style Gregorian calendar in 1912 and changed the official name of Chinese New Year to Spring Festival. The Communist Party under Mao Zedong, which took power in 1949, then tried to do-away with all aspects of the holiday that it considered religious, feudalistic or superstitious. Throughout the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), the Communists even cracked down on lion and dragon dances, along with traditional greetings. “Sometimes very minor things could invite big trouble for you and your family,” Li said. Chinese New Year was reappraised, however, during the period of economic liberalization that followed Mao’s death. Since 1996, it has been designated a weeklong vacation.
