The Fault Lines of Fury

A car dealership in Qingdao that protesters torched because it sold Japanese cars

(Qingdao) – Recent anti-Japan fury spurred angry crowds to march through streets in cities across China. The protests sometimes turned violent, as when a vicious rampage in Xi'an, in the northern province of Shaanxi, left a father paralyzed.

Li Jianli, 50, was on his way home after a day out with his family on September 15 when a group of people nearly beat him to death. The incident began when anti-Japanese protesters spotted Li, his wife, son and son's girlfriend in his Toyota. Seeing that the group was targeting Japanese-branded cars, Li got out and tried to dissuade the mob from attacking his car.