A Heart for Freedom: The Remarkable Journey of a Young Dissident, Her Daring Escape, and Her Quest to Free China's Daughters

A compelling first-person account . . . for all of us seekers who search for true meaning and purpose while battling our private fears and regrets. (Micheal Flaherty, cofounder and president of Walden Media)Gripping . . . moving . . . A compelling tale rich in narrative detail that will keep you completely engrossed (David Aikman, former TIME magazine Beijing bureau chief, and eyewitness to the Tiananmen massacre)A deeply touching firsthand account of what really happened in China that eventually led to the Tiananmen Square massacre. (Yu Ying-shih, professor emeritus, Princeton University, and recipient of the John W. Kluge Prize (2006), Library of Congress) Book Description A compelling first-person account . . . for all of us seekers who search for true meaning and purpose while battling our private fears and regrets. (Micheal Flaherty, cofounder and president of Walden Media)Gripping . . . moving . . . A compelling tale rich in narrative detail that will keep you completely engrossed (David Aikman, former TIME magazine Beijing bureau chief, and eyewitness to the Tiananmen massacre)A deeply touching firsthand account of what really happened in China that eventually led to the Tiananmen Square massacre. (Yu Ying-shih, professor emeritus, Princeton University, and recipient of the John W. Kluge Prize (2006), Library of Congress) From the Inside Flap MY NAME IS CHAI LING. I was born at the beginning of Chinax92s Cultural Revolution. Like all Chinese children, I was taught to love my country, sacrifice my own needs, and be ready to give up my life for a greater good. We were not allowed to know God.In 1989, I became a leader of a student hunger strike in Tiananmen Square, a peaceful movement for a better, freer, and more loving China. There I discovered the truth about the government I had been taught to love. In the early-morning hours of June 4, I stood with my friends and watched in horror as the tanks rolled in. During the crackdown, thousands were wounded or killed.I survived.A lifetime later, after escaping to freedom and achieving success beyond the wildest American dream, I was still trapped between the past and the future. Haunted by memories of standing against the force of a powerful regime, I had lost my purpose, my homeland, and my strength . . . until God met me and healed me. When my eyes were then opened to another life-and-death battle, would I have the courage to join it and risk losing my most precious loved ones again? Do I dare hope that, with Godx92s help, we can finally see true freedom in China? Chai Ling was a key student leader in the 1989 Tiananmen Square movement. Today, she serves as founder, president, and coo of Jenzabar, Inc., a leading higher education software services provider. She holds an mba from Harvard Business School, an mPa in public affairs and international relations from Princeton University, and a ba in psychology from Peking University. Nominated twice for the Nobel Peace Prize, Chai Ling is founder of All Girls Allowed (www.allgirlsallowed.org), an organization dedicated to restoring life, value, and dignity to girls and mothers and revealing the injustice of Chinax92s one-child policy. More than twenty years ago, she led the protesters at Tiananmen Square and became China’s most-wanted woman. Today, she’s finally telling her astonishing story. In the spring of 1989, Chai Ling―a young, idealistic college student in Beijing―found herself leading one of the greatest uprisings in history . . . until it turned into one of history’s most horrifying massacres.Facing imprisonment and possible death at the hands of the Chinese authorities, Chai Ling went deep underground―eventually hiding in a cargo box for five days to escape to safety in the United States. Though haunted by her past, Ling threw herself into pursuing the American dream, completing Ivy League degrees, finding love, and becoming a highly successful entrepreneur. She was twice nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. Yet her longing for true freedom, purpose, and peace remained unfulfilled. Years after the events at Tiananmen Square, she was still searching to find meaning in all the violence, fear, and tragedy she’d endured. A Heart for Freedom is a tale of passion, political furor, and spiritual awakening. An inside look at China, then and now. A love song to a now forbidden country. And the inspirational true story of a woman who has dedicated everything to giving people in China their chance at a future. MY NAME IS CHAI LING. I was born at the beginning of China’s Cultural Revolution. Like all Chinese children, I was taught to love my country, sacrifice my own needs, and be ready to give up my life for a greater good. We were not allowed to know God.In 1989, I became a leader of a student hunger strike in Tiananmen Square, a peaceful movement for a better, freer, and more loving China. There I discovered the truth about the government I had been taught to love. In the early-morning hours of June 4, I stood with my friends and watched in horror as the tanks rolled in. During the crackdown, thousands were wounded or killed.I survived.A lifetime later, after escaping to freedom and achieving success beyond the wildest American dream, I was still trapped between the past and the future. Haunted by memories of standing against the force of a powerful regime, I had lost my purpose, my homeland, and my strength . . . until God met me and healed me. When my eyes were then opened to another life-and-death battle, would I have the courage to join it and risk losing my most precious loved ones again? Do I dare hope that, with God’s help, we can finally see true freedom in China? Chai Ling was a key student leader in the 1989 Tiananmen Square movement. Today, she serves as founder, president, and coo of Jenzabar, Inc., a leading higher education software services provider. She holds an mba from Harvard Business School, an mPa in public affairs and international relations from Princeton University, and a ba in psychology from Peking University. Nominated twice for the Nobel Peace Prize, Chai Ling is founder of All Girls Allowed (www.allgirlsallowed.org), an organization dedicated to restoring life, value, and dignity to girls and mothers and revealing the injustice of China’s one-child policy. Read more