Amy describes her old friend and neighbor, who had a particularly horrible childhood. When Amy was 3 years old in 1955 a new neighbor moved in downstairs into their apartment. The father worked for the international trading department of the Shanghai city government. His wife was a University graduate for journalism and worked for a prestigious newspaper. Amy’s friend was named Mei Mei. She was born in 1956.
When the CCP announced that they were not a “one voice party” and welcomed different opinions, Mei Mei wrote a lot of opinion pieces. However, Mao then announced that anyone who spoke against the CCP was a “poison snake”. Mei Mei’s mother was arrested, sent to a labor camp and the father was told to divorce her. He begged the local leader not to force him to divorce her, pleading that his wife had made a mistake. After hiring a nanny to care for their child, and many letters pleading for his wife’s release, after 8 years she was allowed to come home, provided she did not return to work.
In 1966, during the Cultural Revolution, Mei Mei’s father’s brother was accused of being an intellectual and attacked. He jumped out of a window. Mei Mei’s father was told to identify the body and denounce his brother. When he returned home, he told his family not to retrieve the body if he dies.
In 1967, Mei Mei’s father and his boss was accused of being a “class enemy”. They were tortured and beaten. He was told that his wife would be sent back to the labor camp. He bought a ferry ticket and jumped into the ocean.
Mei Mei tried not to remember these things, but there was a documentary depicting great changes in China over the next 20 years. The documentary correctly predicted economic progress, but incorrectly predicted more political openness.
Amy suggested that Mei Mei could tell her family’s story to her daughter. Mei Mei was unable to tell the documentarians her story. So, Amy ended up being interviewed.