Erwin Engst
Encyclopedia
Erwin Engst (1919 - 2003; ) was an American advisor to the People's Republic to China. He moved to China in 1946 to assist in developments in agriculture and later to participate in the construction of that country's socialist economy. He married Joan Hinton
in 1949 in Yan'an
. They worked at a farm near Xi'an
and moved to Beijing
to work as translators and editors at the beginning of the Cultural Revolution
in 1966.
On August 29, 1966, Hinton, Engst and two other Americans living in China signed a poster with the following text:
In 1972, Hinton and Engst started working in agriculture again at the Beijing
Red Star Commune.
In a 1996 interview with CNN
, after nearly 50 years in China, Hinton stated "[we] never intended to stay in China so long, but were too caught up to leave." http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9610/01/china.us.reds/ Hinton describes the changes she and Engst had witnessed in China since the beginning of the economic reforms of Deng Xiaoping in the late 1970s. They state they "have watched their socialist dream fall apart" as much of China embraced capitalism. As CNN correspondent Andrea Koppel
notes, "Once considered radical leftists by their native countrymen, Hinton and Engst are now too radical for most of China's countrymen."
Following Engst's death in 2003, Hinton lived alone on a farm near Beijing
until her death on June 8, 2010. Their three children have moved to the United States, though Hinton notes "They probably would have stayed if China were still socialist." http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5653644/
Joan Hinton
Joan Hinton was a nuclear physicist and one of the few women who worked for the Manhattan Project in Los Alamos. She lived in the People's Republic of China after 1949, where she and her husband Erwin Engst participated in China’s efforts at developing a socialist economy, working extensively in...
in 1949 in Yan'an
Yan'an
Yan'an , is a prefecture-level city in the Shanbei region of Shaanxi province in China, administering several counties, including Zhidan County , which served as the Chinese communist capital before the city of Yan'an proper took that role....
. They worked at a farm near Xi'an
Xi'an
Xi'an is the capital of the Shaanxi province, and a sub-provincial city in the People's Republic of China. One of the oldest cities in China, with more than 3,100 years of history, the city was known as Chang'an before the Ming Dynasty...
and moved to Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
to work as translators and editors at the beginning of the Cultural Revolution
Cultural Revolution
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution , was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976...
in 1966.
On August 29, 1966, Hinton, Engst and two other Americans living in China signed a poster with the following text:
- Which monsters and freaks are pulling the strings so foreigners get this kind of treatment? Foreigners working in China, no matter what class background they have, no matter what their attitude is toward the revolution, they all get the "five nots and two haves": the five nots - first: no physical labour, second: no thought reform, third: no chances of contacs with workers and peasants, fourth: no participation in class struggle, fifth: no participation in production struggle; the two haves - first: they have an exceptionally high living standard, second: they have all kinds of specialisation. What kind of concept is that? This is Khrushchevism, this is revisionist thinking, this is class exploitation! [...] We demand: [...] Seventh: the same living standard and he same level of Chinese staff; eighth: no specialisation any more. Long live the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution!
In 1972, Hinton and Engst started working in agriculture again at the Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
Red Star Commune.
In a 1996 interview with CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
, after nearly 50 years in China, Hinton stated "[we] never intended to stay in China so long, but were too caught up to leave." http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9610/01/china.us.reds/ Hinton describes the changes she and Engst had witnessed in China since the beginning of the economic reforms of Deng Xiaoping in the late 1970s. They state they "have watched their socialist dream fall apart" as much of China embraced capitalism. As CNN correspondent Andrea Koppel
Andrea Koppel
Andrea Koppel is an American communications strategist, and a former TV journalist.-Education and career:She attended Stone Ridge and earned a bachelor's degree in political science with a concentration in Chinese language and Asian studies from Middlebury College, and is fluent in Mandarin...
notes, "Once considered radical leftists by their native countrymen, Hinton and Engst are now too radical for most of China's countrymen."
Following Engst's death in 2003, Hinton lived alone on a farm near Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
until her death on June 8, 2010. Their three children have moved to the United States, though Hinton notes "They probably would have stayed if China were still socialist." http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5653644/
Literature
Dao-yuan Chou: Silage Choppers & Snake Spirits. The Lives & Struggles of Two Americans in Modern China. Ibon Books, Quezon 2009, ISBN 971-0483-37-4.External links
- Leftist Americans in China grieve shift to capitalism, Andrea Koppel (CNN, October 1, 1996)—with photo of Sid Ernst and Hinton
- Rare blood donated to save American friend (China Daily, October 23, 2003)