Umbrella Square 1.79

Umbrella Square, also called Umbrella Plaza, describes a large roadway in Admiralty, Hong Kong occupied by protesters during the Umbrella Movement protests in September 2014. On 11 December 2014, after 74 days of occupation, the area was cleared by the police and reopened to motorised traffic.OriginThe area became completely pedestrianised area after the 28 September 2014, when the Hong Kong police decided to employ tear gas against peaceful protesters. The use of teargas by the police brought hundreds of thousands of people to the area.Geography and delimitationUmbrella Square comprised virtually the entire lengths of Harcourt Road, and Tim Mei Avenue. There were barricades on each end and on roads leading to or off both roads, numbering 21 in total. Initially an informal term by the occupiers, "Umbrella Square" became a recognised name as people continued to occupy the site. The name became incorporated into maps. During the 2014 Hong Kong protests the area was home to around 2,000 tents of varying sizes, many of which were given addresses by the residents. It was reported that postal services delivered to Umbrella Square tent addresses, although the Hong Kong Post officially denies having done so.CultureJonathan Kaiman of The Guardian described Umbrella Square as a "high-functioning utopian collective blocked off by a handful of elaborate barricades". Upon entering, Kaiman observed that "the overwhelming feeling is one of entering an art fair, or a music festival – protesters sit on the pavement cross-legged, strumming guitars and checking their smartphones. During the day, tourists amble through the crowd, snapping photos with SLR cameras; at night, hundreds, sometimes thousands of supporters gather to hear speeches and performances."