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Bo Hui, 30, is a photographer; Charmaine Mok, 28, an editor; Kelly Chan, 28, works in PR. All were born and raised in Hong Kong. Tiffany Ap, 26, is a reporter who was born in Australia but grew up in HK. Conversations were conducted separately and edited together for clarity.
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Tiffany Ap: I was out Sunday until about midnight. I was walking through Central Station, and I could feel my eyes burning, so I put on my mask and goggles. But, I was confused: Why would they tear-gas a metro station? But, they hadn’t. They’d just used so much tear gas outside it was literally seeping into the station.
![IMG_20140929_212108](http://s1.r29static.com/bin/entry/912/x,80/1298261/img-20140929-212108.jpg)
The protesters themselves have been lauded for being very organized and very peaceful. What’s it like out there?
CM: It feels very much like a grassroots movement. There are always protests, but in years past, they’ve felt hijacked by special-interest groups. This time, there’s no kind of obvious political agenda, other than that we want the government to listen to us. There are no glossy, printed banners. It’s all people writing on the streets, making music, singing. It feels completely different from anything else that’s been happening over the last 10 years.
CM: Initially it was a very young demographic, but now even my own parents — who have been very cynical about the government for a long time — they saw the violence against students Sunday night. Since that night, they’ve been out.
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