The May Fourth Youth Day is a festival set up to commemorate the patriotic movement of Chinese students on May 4, 1919. On November 11, 1918, World War I, which lasted for four years, ended with the victory of Britain, the United States, and France and the defeat of Germany and Austria. In January 1919, the winning allies held a peace conference in Paris. The Republic of China participated in the meeting as a victor. At the meeting, the representative of the Republic of China proposed the abolition of foreign privileges in China and the abolition of 21 legitimate demands such as 21, which were rejected. The meeting decided that Japan would take over the various privileges of Germany in China. The representative of the Republic of China was actually ready to sign and recognize this treaty of bereavement and disgrace. The news came, the country was furious, and the feelings were angry. The May 4th Patriotic Movement led by students began like a volcanic eruption.
The May 4th Movement was a complete uncompromising anti-imperialist and anti-feudal patriotic movement. It promoted the combination of Marxism and the Chinese workers' movement, created a group of intellectuals with preliminary communist ideas, and made ideological and cadre preparations for the establishment of the Communist Party of China. The May 4th Movement unveiled the prelude to China's new democratic revolution. This patriotic movement promoted the course of Chinese history and the widespread spread of Marxism in China. In order to inherit and carry forward the glorious revolutionary tradition of Chinese youth since the May 4th Movement, in 1939, the Northwest Youth Salvation Federation of the Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningxia Border Region established May 4th as Youth Day. In December 1949, the Administrative Office of the Central People's Government officially announced this provision. The spirit of "patriotism, progress, democracy, and science" advocated by the May 4th Movement is still respected by contemporary young people.
May 4, 2014 is the 95th May Fourth Youth Day.