Song Binbin, a prominent student leader of China’s Red Guards, passed away on September 16 at the age of 77. She was known for her involvement in the brutal beating death of her high school principal, Bian Zhongyun, in 1966, which became one of the most notorious killings during the Cultural Revolution.
Song’s brother, Song Kehuang, announced her death on the Chinese app WeChat, noting that she had died in the United States but providing no further details. Her passing reignited discussions on Chinese social media about her tearful apology in 2014 and the Communist Party’s failure to acknowledge the full impact of the Cultural Revolution, a decade-long upheaval that resulted in the deaths of more than a million people and remains a heavily censored topic in China.
The daughter of a high-ranking general in the People’s Liberation Army, Song was a student at Beijing Normal University Girls High School when she joined her classmates in responding to Mao Zedong’s call to turn against perceived enemies of the state.
On August 5, 1966, she participated in the brutal attack on Principal Bian, who was beaten and left to die. Although Song later claimed she did not directly participate in the beating, she acknowledged her role as a leader among the Red Guards. After years of silence regarding her past, she issued a public apology in 2014, expressing deep remorse for her involvement.
Her apology received mixed reactions, with some viewing it as insufficient without a broader acknowledgment from the Communist Party regarding the atrocities committed during that era.
Her father, Song Renqiong, remained influential in the party after the Cultural Revolution, while Song Binbin’s family later regained prominence among China’s elite. She lived in the U.S. for several decades, earning advanced degrees and becoming a naturalized citizen before returning to China in 2003.
Peoplesmind
