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He stood for us
The young Chinese student
Stood for us
In front of those tanks
He stood not for fame
Or fortune
He stood for us
All of us
He stood for all those
Past, present, and future
Who have yearned
For freedom
Not the freedom of the dollar
But the freedom of the mind
And the freedom of the human spirit
Not the freedom of material security
He stood for all of us
Who see our freedom
Being traded for wealth
And false security
He stood for all of us
Who have already forgotten
His courage and his willingness
To stand for all of us
He stood for the men driving the tanks
He stood for those who may have killed him
He stood for those who would sell him out
He stood for those who have never heard of him
He stands today
In front of those tanks
In front of those cameras
Inside of our hearts
If he is still alive
I thank him
For standing for me
For standing for us
I hope he has a long and happy life
I hope he knows how many of us love him
For what he did
For all of us
If he is not alive
I hope he knew that he did not die in vain
For he did not die in vain
He did not die
He left an eternal signpost
For all of us to follow
An example
Of what it means to stand for freedom
He carried no gun
Only a jacket and bag
He carried no weapon
Only his courage, outrage, and determination
It is all we need
To fight the enemies of freedom
Both at home and abroad
Both here and around the world
It is all we need
To seize our moment
When our time comes
To stand up for freedom
To keep our minds and hearts free
In a world of cowardice and cruelty
In a world that refuses to remember
In a world that chooses to forget
The young Chinese student
Who stood for us
In front of those tanks
He stood for us
