On June 30,
Jiefang Daily reported an article titled
Jing’an District Effectively and Flexibly Utilizes Revolutionary Resources to Establish Multi-dimensional Revolutionary Culture Brands
—Subtly Promoting Revolutionary Culture Through Party History Classrooms
on the front page.
Let’s take a look
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Jing’an District is home to 106 revolutionary sites and relics and has established 11 revolutionary venues. A number of revolution-themed footpaths, Party-mass Service Centers, revolutionary culture-themed pocket parks, and revolution-themed micro spaces are strategically scattered throughout the district, seamlessly integrating into the daily lives of residents and reaching into the “Last Mile” of their life circles.
The revolutionary drama Once Upon a Time in Fudeli made its debut in Jing’an District and got rave reviews, being described as “shocking”, “moving”, and “inspiring”. Within 100 days after its premiere, it embarked on a national tour in 10 cities across five provinces. Additionally, “Let’s Go to Jing’an” released 20 short videos detailing the five tourist routes in the district.
“Salute to the revolutionary predecessors!”
Recently, Zhang Chenye, a pupil in Grade 3, visited 14 Lane 930, Wuding Road, Jing’an District, Shanghai. After the visit, he excitedly wrote this sentence on the message book.
This two-story red brick building with an attic is a new-style lane residence commonly found in old Shanghai. It also holds significant historical value as the “red fortress”, serving as the location of the intelligence security agency set up by the Communist Party of China (CPC) from 1927 to 1935 in Shanghai. In April this year, the renovated Memorial Hall of the Former Site of the Special Task Division of the Central Committee of the CPC was officially opened (For details, please click → The Memorial Hall of the Former Site of the Special Task Division of the Central Committee of the CPC Opens in Jing’an District, Shanghai). It offers a comprehensive and dramatic presentation of heroic stories, vividly reproducing the entire struggle of the Special Task Division of the Central Committee of the CPC in Shanghai for the first time.
In recent years, Jing’an District has placed significant emphasis on preserving and utilizing revolutionary resources. Following the principles of “overall planning, scientific preservation, orderly development, and rational utilization”, the district has further promoted the protection and utilization of these resources, vigorously inherited the glorious tradition, and sustained the revolutionary legacy, bolstering Jing’an’s revolutionary culture brand.
Establishing diverse Party history classrooms
Jing’an is a core area for the CPC’s early activities where Marxism was spread, the revolutionary leaders stayed, the early organs of the CPC Central Committee gathered, the first Party Constitution was created, and the mass movements began. Additionally, Jing’an is significant for being the birthplace of the CPC’s united front policy. Jing’an District boasts 106 revolutionary sites and relics, including the Former Site of the Special Task Division of the Central Committee of the CPC, ranking among the top across districts in Shanghai.
With the continuous efforts of previous administrations of the CPC Jing’an District Committee, Jing’an District has built a number of revolutionary venues such as the Memorial Site of the Second CPC National Congress, the Historical Memorial Hall of the Central Bureau after the Third CPC National Congress, the Mao Zedong’s Former Residence Exhibition Gallery in Shanghai, and the Mao Zedong’s Former Residence in 1920. In 2016, Shanghai launched the “Creation of the World — CPC’s Birthplace Exploration and Publicity Project”. Jing’an District undertook the preparatory work for the construction of the Memorial Halls of the Site of the CPC Central Military Commission, the Former Secretariat Site of the CPC Central Committee, and the Former Site of the Special Task Division of the Central Committee of the CPC, as part of the city’s “One Museum, Five Sites” project. These memorial halls were opened in May 2021, June 2023, and April 2024 respectively.
Over the years, Jing’an District has steadfastly adhered to the principles of “ensuring safety, restoring the old as old, standardizing procedures, and prioritizing high-quality projects”. Guided by these principles, the district has meticulously planned and vigorously promoted the excavation and construction of the former sites. At present, it has established 11 revolutionary venues within the district.
In Jing’an District, a number of revolution-themed footpaths, Party-mass Service Centers, revolutionary culture-themed pocket parks, and revolution-themed micro spaces are strategically scattered, with revolutionary culture promotion reaching into the “Last Mile” of residents’ daily lives.
The Yanzhong Greenbelt (Jing’an section) where the Memorial Site of the Second CPC National Congress is located is named “Fudeli Park”. (For details, please click → “Monet’s Garden” Appears in the Downtown! Exploring the “Mysterious Valleys” between High-rise Buildings ↑↑↑) Jing’an District is also actively preparing for the construction of the “National Confidential Password System Revolutionary Traditional Education Base”. This initiative includes establishing the “Everlasting Radio Wave - Exhibition of Historical Materials of the First Radio Station of the CPC Central Committee” (tentative name) near the former site of the first radio station of the CPC Central Committee.
“Every time I step into a new Party history ‘classroom’, I remind myself to remember the history,” said the resident Li Chunyi.
Creating excellent revolutionary “textbooks”
The diverse “classroom” space for Party history requires revolutionary “textbooks” that are more attuned to contemporary tastes.
On April 23, 2021, Once Upon a Time in Fudeli, the first “non-fiction drama” focusing on the Second CPC National Congress, premiered at the Shanghai Daning Theatre. (For details, please click → A Hundred Years Ago, a Group of Young People Who Exulted in Their Youth). This drama is also the first original work highlighting revolutionary culture commissioned by Shanghai · Jing’an Modern Drama Valley. The average age of the creation team is no more than 28. They have crafted a refreshing revolutionary drama that resonates with contemporary aesthetics. The drama got rave reviews, being described as “shocking”, “moving”, and “inspiring”. Within 100 days after its premiere, it embarked on a national tour in 10 cities across five provinces, with 33 performances, including 14 community performances. It has been hailed as a pleasant and accessible cultural Party lecture.
The Fudeli revolutionary IPs centered around the Memorial Site of the Second CPC National Congress feature a non-fiction drama, a miniature model exhibition, a high-definition theatrical film of the same name, a revolutionary market, and a publication of “panoramic documentary”.
On November 7, 2022, the high-definition theatrical film of Once Upon a Time in Fudeli premiered in Jing’an District, Shanghai. The emotional impact on people extends from the theater to the cinema. Currently, the one-year itinerant miniature model exhibition of Once Upon a Time in Fudeli (For details, please click → The Miniature Model Exhibition of Once Upon a Time in Fudeli is Opening Today! “Secrets” for a Sneak Peek→) has been showcased across 14 sub-districts and towns in Jing’an District.
In addition to creating the Fudeli revolutionary IPs, Jing’an District has actively organized the creation of literary and artistic works, leading to the release of numerous revolutionary works. For example, the district has compiled and published books such as Revolutionary Legacy—An Overview of Important Revolutionary Sites in Jing’an District, Shanghai, Revolutionary Jing’an—100 Stories about the Birthplace of the First Party Constitution, The History of the Second CPC National Congress, and Turbulent Hundred Years—The Image History of the CPC in Jing’an. Additionally, the district has also filmed over 100 micro-videos highlighting important revolutionary sites (relics) in Jing’an District. These micro-videos include “Original Aspiration·Mission—A Tour of Revolutionary Sites in Jing’an District, Shanghai”, “The Preferred Land of Revolution in Jing’an”, and “Eternal Banner—Revolutionary Journey of Century-old Party Constitution”.
These vibrant revolutionary “textbooks” have provided authoritative and rich learning materials for cadres, the general public, and young people, enabling them to inherit the glorious tradition and sustain the revolutionary legacy. This has significantly amplified the spread and influence of revolutionary culture.
Launching a wonderful “great ideological and political theory course”
As the birthplace of the first Party Constitution, the Memorial Site of the Second CPC National Congress has launched the brand project “Eternal Banner—Mobile Classroom for Party Constitution Learning” (For details, please click → The Mobile Classroom for Party Constitution Learning Launched by the Memorial Site of the Second CPC National Congress Opens in 2024). In May this year, the Memorial Site of the Second CPC National Congress unveiled a special exhibition titled “Discipline in the Party Constitution”, providing vivid teaching materials for party discipline learning and education. Through a series of activities such as mobile classrooms for the Party Constitution, a special exhibition, and revolutionary study tour, Jing’an District has seamlessly integrated revolutionary culture into this “great ideological and political theory course” in an imperceptible way.
This “great ideological and political theory course” is becoming increasingly exciting in Jing’an District. On May 27, the Publicity Department of the CPC Jing’an District Committee and Shanghai Media Group jointly released the first short video of “Let’s Go to Jing’an” (For details, please click → Now! Let’s Go to Jing’an!). Renowned hosts from Shanghai were invited to participate in the series of videos that introduce important revolutionary landmarks as well as historical and cultural buildings in Jing’an District. These videos feature a collaborative narrative of hosts and teenagers. The series includes 20 short videos detailing the five tourist routes in the district.
The revolutionary culture education in Jing’an District has been seamlessly integrated into all aspects of ideological and moral education, cultural knowledge education, and social practice education. In addition to the short video series of “Let’s Go to Jing’an”, Jing’an District has also cooperated with well-known self-media platforms such as “Stone Knows” to design and launch original graphics, texts, and video works of “Cartoon of Revolutionary Jing’an”. The district has also partnered with the Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra to organize revolutionary concerts and with the district Education Bureau to ensure “full coverage of revolutionary education in primary and secondary schools in Jing’an” by conducting a variety of revolutionary cultural experience activities. These resonant, empathetic, and widely acclaimed “great ideological and political theory courses” have established multi-dimensional revolutionary culture brands in Jing’an District.
Protection and Utilization of Revolutionary Resources in Jing’an District
The relevant person in charge of the joint meeting stated that
Next, Jing’an District will persistently and steadily promote the inheritance and promotion of revolutionary culture highlighting “the birthplace of the Party”, take various measures to effectively utilize revolutionary resources, and repair and protect them with reverence. The district will strengthen technological empowerment, diversify exhibition forms, and narrate revolutionary stories with sincerity and passion, making efforts to build a linkage pattern for protection and utilization of revolutionary sites, revolutionary cultural relics, memorial facilities, as well as archival documents. The aim is to promote new progress in the protection and utilization of revolutionary resources in Jing’an District, making more contributions to building Shanghai into the best practice place of Xi Jinping’s cultural thought. Ultimately, these initiatives will help to continually enhance the soft power of Shanghai as an international cultural metropolis.