The City of Tears: Reproductive Justice and Community Resistance in Hong Kong’s Anti-ELAB Movement

This article examines Hongkongers’ decentralized tactics of resistance in response to the government’s suppression of political freedom and misuse of crowd-control chemical weapons, especially tear gas. Through the lens of reproductive justice (RJ), this article illustrates the coalition potential between RJ activists and pro-democracy Hongkongers who enact strategies such as citizen science, community medical care, and cross-generational marches to cultivate a safer environment for all. Amplifying the everyday tactics that Hongkongers deploy at the grassroots level, this article also argues that despite the political outcome and measurable success of any grassroots tactics, it is important for researchers to document and analyze these acts as a way of bearing witness. Although they are contingent on specific historical moments and sociopolitical contexts, these tactics can also help inform future grassroots coalitions and activism.