If you believe the Chinese Communist Party, it is the selfless guardian of the Chinese people, tirelessly toiling for national rejuvenation, waving away the dark clouds of the “Century of Humiliation” with a red flag in one hand and a peace dove in the other.
In this version of reality, the CCP is a savior, a redeemer, the only thing standing between China’s greatness and the predatory foreigners lurking at the gates.
Unfortunately, reality has a nasty habit of refusing to cooperate with CCP propaganda.
When the red curtains are pulled back, a much uglier truth is revealed: The CCP does not represent the Chinese people. It never has.
Its true strategic objective is not Chinese rejuvenation but preserving its monopoly on power. The so-called Century of Humiliation? It is not a distant historical injustice. It is an ongoing tragedy inflicted by the CCP — a betrayal dressed up as patriotism, a crime scene hidden under layers of xenophobic slogans.
The original “Century of Humiliation” (1839–1949) involved modernized foreign powers imposing unequal treaties, exploiting China’s weakness and humiliating its people. It was real. It was brutal. Still, the true and most horrifying “Century of Humiliation” is perpetrated by the CCP itself in its century of existence (1921-2025).
In its false narrative, what the CCP fails to mention is that since 1949, the most systematic, violent and enduring humiliation of the Chinese people has come not from any foreigners but from the Chinese Communist Party itself. During the “Great Leap Forward,” 30 million to 45 million were killed by famine, not by foreign guns. The Cultural Revolution: The burning of temples, the smashing of traditions and the executions of teachers were conducted not by invaders but by zealots in Mao jackets. Tiananmen Square: The massacre of Chinese youths in 1989 was not ordered by Queen Victoria. It came from the Politburo.
Today’s mass surveillance state, censorship, forced labor camps in Xinjiang and the constant purging of dissenters are modern extensions of this internal war against the Chinese people. The “Century of Humiliation” never ended; it was merely nationalized and maximized by the CCP.
The CCP understands a simple principle: It’s much easier to rule if you can keep people angry at outsiders instead of you. Thus, every failure is blamed on “foreign hostile forces.”
Economic slowdown? Western sabotage. Popular discontent? CIA plots. Hong Kong protests? American “black hand.” Uyghur resistance? Foreign infiltration. Meanwhile, the party’s real crimes — corruption, nepotism, jailing journalists, prevalent arbitrary prosecution and summary execution, land seizures, environmental disasters, repression — are swept under the rug with the magic words “foreign threat.”
It’s an old trick, beloved by tyrants across history: Invent external enemies to justify internal oppression.
The irony is breathtaking. The CCP crushes the Chinese people and then accuses the world of oppressing China.
The party claims its “primary strategic goal” is the “great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.” A beautiful phrase — vague enough to mean anything, sentimental enough to discourage questions.
Let’s be honest. A rejuvenated China would be open, confident, creative and respected. The CCP’s China is paranoid, brittle, stagnant and feared.
Real rejuvenation requires intellectual freedom, civic dignity and historical honesty, all of which the CCP ruthlessly suppresses. Instead, the party offers a zombie version of nationalism: giant parades, loud slogans and censorship masquerading as pride.
In truth, the CCP’s version of “rejuvenation” means returning China to its rightful place, not as a beacon of civilization but as a plantation farmed for the benefit of the party elite. China is not rising because of the CCP. It is rising in spite of it, with chains still rattling around its ankles.
The CCP’s one true objective is painfully clear: to perpetuate its rule at any cost. Everything else is negotiable. Growth? Only if it doesn’t threaten control. Technology? Only if it can be weaponized against dissent. Wealth? Only for those loyal to the party line.
The real enemies of the Chinese people are not foreign corporations or imaginary Western conspirators. They are the gray-faced men in Zhongnanhai who fear books more than bombs, who fear questions more than armies, and who have turned one of the world’s oldest civilizations into a police state draped in red.
The CCP has betrayed China and blamed the world for the consequences. It has stolen the blood, sweat and hope of the Chinese people. It has humiliated them more thoroughly than any imperialist ever dreamed. And it has the audacity to wave the flag of patriotism as it does so.
The real rejuvenation of China will begin the day the Chinese people realize the truth. Their enemy is not overseas. It is seated at home, cloaked in red banners, and speaks the language of “liberation” while building its prison.
Until then, the party will continue to wage its greatest campaign: the cover-up of its crimes under the banner of the nation’s glory. And the real century of humiliation will continue.