Hong Kong’s moment of calm is in danger of being squandered

Hong Kong got a rare moment of calm this past weekend, when not a single canister of tear gas was fired—a rarity in a city where the use of the chemical has quickly become normalized over the past 11 weeks of protests. Some 1.7 million people marched peacefully on the city’s streets this past Sunday (Aug. 18) in a massive show of solidarity and continued dissatisfaction with the government, as they insisted their demands—including the full withdrawal of an extradition bill, and the establishment of an independent investigation into police conduct—be met.