See what led protesters to a breaking point with China’s ‘zero covid’ policy

As the world moved on from pandemic restrictions earlier this year, China doubled down on its strategy of trying to eliminate the coronavirus within its borders. In the name of “zero covid,” 1.4 billion Chinese citizens confronted a grim reality — a third year of strict lockdowns, relentless testing, lengthy quarantines and the constant tracking of their movements.

Now, many people are pushing back.

Mass protests have spread across China in the past month — from manufacturing hubs to universities, cities and minority regions in the far west, with more than a dozen locations verified by The Washington Post. In extraordinary scenes, citizens have gathered despite the significant risk of arrest. They have called for their country to be “freed,” not just from the government’s pandemic policies but also from its far-reaching control over their lives.

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