In early 2011, amid calls for a “Jasmine Revolution” in China inspired by uprisings abroad, groups of young people and elderly petitioners quietly gathered in busy shopping districts across major cities each Sunday, staging an unusual form of dissent defined by indirect action rather than visible protest. There were no banners or chants—many participants simply walked, lingered, or exchanged knowing looks. Protesters blended into crowds and claimed they were merely shopping. Organizers described the movement as a phased effort that could eventually include openly holding jasmine flowers while playing the folk song Such a Beautiful Jasmine.