On this day, 8 January 1932, Korean independence activist Lee Bong-chang threw hand grenades at the car of the Japanese emperor as he returned from a military review in Tokyo.
Lee was born in Seoul in 1900, and first worked at a bakery before moving to Manchuria and working as an apprentice train driver. There, he was discriminated against by Japanese colleagues, who referred to him by the derogatory term for Korean people: “Josenjing”.
Lee then began to organise against Japanese colonialism, and moved to Japan, working as a labourer, in a shop and as a factory worker, and learning Japanese. He decided to try to assassinate Emperor Hirohito, and managed to get hold of two hand grenades. Lee told a friend: “I’m 31 years old. Even if I live 31 more years, I don’t think I’ll be given more pleasure than now. I’ll now fulfill my sacred mission to surprise the world for the sake of my country’s independence and freedom.”
Emperor Hirohito was unharmed by the grenades, and Lee was promptly arrested and later sentenced to death. He was executed on October 10, 1932, but the audacity of his act spurred further organising against Japanese occupation.
Pic: Right is a posed photo of Lee holding grenades before the attack which was blurry so the left image was made instead https://www.facebook.com/workingclasshistory/photos/a.1819457841572691/2181504562034682/?type=3
Photo of the oviraptorosaur embryo ‘Baby Yingliang’. It is one of the best-preserved dinosaur embryos ever reported. Courtesy Xing et al., 2021
[ID. Top is art of a beaked dinosaur (Oviraptorosaur) curled up inside of an egg, head between its feet. It is sparsely covered in downy feathers. Its eyes are shut and on its beak is a slight smile.
Bottom is a photo of the fossil the art was based on, Baby Yingliang. Each bone is visible, its body in the same pose but turned skeletal. Even fossilized, its tail end still appears downy. End ID.]
“I can’t come back if nobody remembers me. I can’t come back if nobody’s afraid. I had to search the bowels of Hell, but I found someone, someone who’ll make ‘em remember. He may get the blood, but I’ll get the glory, and that fear is my ticket home.”
