Xiong Yan ( zh, c=熊焱; born 1 September 1964) is a Chinese-American human rights activist, military officer, and

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

chaplain. He was a

dissident A dissident is a person who actively challenges an established political or religious system, doctrine, belief, policy, or institution. In a religious context, the word has been used since the 18th century, and in the political sense since the 2 ...

involved in

1989 Tiananmen Square protests The Tiananmen Square protests, known within China as the June Fourth Incident, were student-led Demonstration (people), demonstrations held in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China, lasting from 15 April to 4 June 1989. After weeks of unsucces ...

. Xiong Yan studied at

Peking University Peking University (PKU) is a Public university, public Types of universities and colleges in China#By designated academic emphasis, university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of the Peop ...

Law School from 1986 to 1989. He came to the United States of America as a political refugee in 1992, and later became a

chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intellige ...

in U.S. Army, serving in

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

. Xiong Yan is the author of three books, and has earned six degrees. He ran for Congress in New York's 10th congressional district in 2022, and his campaign was reportedly attacked by agents of China's Ministry of State Security.

Dissident

Growing up in

Hunan Hunan is an inland Provinces of China, province in Central China. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the Administrative divisions of China, province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi to the east, Gu ...

, he moved to Beijing to pursue graduate level studies in law at

. He was a probationary member of the

Chinese Communist Party The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...

. While at Peking University, he was a member of ''Caodi'' Salon, which Liu Gang had organized. Yan was a student leader during the

1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre The Tiananmen Square protests, known within China as the June Fourth Incident, were student-led demonstrations held in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China, lasting from 15 April to 4 June 1989. After weeks of unsuccessful attempts between t ...

. At one point, he called himself "general commander". After the military crackdown and massacre at Tiananmen Square, he was placed on China's

most wanted list A most wanted list is a list of criminals and alleged criminals who are believed to be fugitive, at large and are identified as a law enforcement agency's highest priority for capture. The list can alert the public to be watchful, and generates ...

. Captured in late June 1989 at Datong, he was returned to Beijing under armed guard of hundreds of soldiers. Afterwards, he was detained for 19 months at maximum security Qincheng Prison without being charged with a crime. After his release, Yan's academic credentials were stripped from him, and he was unable to obtain identification. During this period he converted to

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

. He fled mainland China in May 1992. After being granted political asylum he moved to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in June 1992, initially moving to the Los Angeles area. He remains a

fugitive A fugitive or runaway is a person who is fleeing from custody, whether it be from jail, a government arrest, government or non-government questioning, vigilante violence, or outraged private individuals. A fugitive from justice, also known ...

of the People's Republic of China.

After leaving China

Moving to

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, he studied English at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

and was accepted into its

divinity school A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy ...

but declined its admission. He later attended

Gordon–Conwell Theological Seminary Gordon–Conwell Theological Seminary (GCTS) is an evangelical seminary with its main campus in Hamilton, Massachusetts, and three other campuses in Boston, Massachusetts; Charlotte, North Carolina; and Jacksonville, Florida. According to the Ass ...

; eventually he earned a D.Min. degree from the same seminary in 2009. He is active in the overseas China democracy movement. In 2009, he made a trip to

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

to attend a candlelight vigil on the June 4 anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown. It was estimated that 150,000 people attended the vigil. This was the first time, within a 17-year time span, for Yan to return to China since 1992.
In 2010, Chai Ling and he were panel members at a discussion on China's

One-child policy The one-child policy ( zh, c=一孩政策, p=yī hái zhèngcè) was a population planning initiative in China implemented between 1979 and 2015 to curb the country's population growth by restricting many families to a single child. The progr ...

held at Rayburn House Office Building. In 2015, after receiving word that his mother's health was failing, Yan appealed to mainland China to be allowed to return to see her before she dies; he was detained when trying to cross into China from

, and was unable to see her before she died. In 2017, when a United Kingdom diplomatic cable was declassified, which estimated that about 10,000 civilians were killed, Xiong agreed with the account. Xiong Yan was listed as a member of the preparatory committee of the Wang Dan's June 4 Memorial Museum. On 4 February, he published a statement protesting against the inclusion of his name in the committee. On 16 February, Xiong Yan participated in an event organized by an overseas Chinese group against the June 4th Memorial Museum.

Military service

Yan went on to join the United States Army while working on a second bachelor's degree, studying at the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the Public university, public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referre ...

. He graduated with a B.A. in English Literature in 1998. By 1999, he was a

sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...

in the Army Reserve. He went on to earn an M.A. degree from the Covenant Theological Seminary in 2001 and a Master of Arts in religion (M.A.R.) degree from

Trinity Evangelical Divinity School Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (TEDS) is the divinity school of Trinity International University, an evangelical Christian university headquartered in Bannockburn, Illinois. The divinity school was founded in 1897. In April 2025, Trinit ...

in 2002. Serving eight years in the Army Reserve, he was commissioned as an officer in 2003. He serves as a Protestant chaplain of the Evangelical Church Alliance denomination. In 2010, he was a chaplain at the Warrant Officer Career College on Fort Rucker. In 2014, Yan was stationed at

Fort Bliss Fort Bliss is a United States Army post in New Mexico and Texas, with its headquarters in El Paso, Texas. Established in 1848, the fort was renamed in 1854 to honor William Wallace Smith Bliss, Bvt.Lieut.Colonel William W.S. Bliss (1815–1853 ...

. Yan served two tours in Iraq. Xiong has considered running for Congress in the future, after he retires from the Army. In 2017, Xiong was stationed in Hawaii.

Congressional campaign

In 2022, Yan ran for Congress in New York's 10th congressional district as a Democrat. The

United States Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a United States federal executive departments, federal executive department of the U.S. government that oversees the domestic enforcement of Law of the Unite ...

has reported that his campaign was attacked by agents of China's Ministry of State Security, including

surveillance Surveillance is the monitoring of behavior, many activities, or information for the purpose of information gathering, influencing, managing, or directing. This can include observation from a distance by means of electronic equipment, such as ...

, and discussion of possible smear campaigns,

honey trapping Honey trapping is a practice involving the use of romantic or sexual relationships for interpersonal, political (including state espionage), or monetary purpose. The ''honey pot'' or ''trap'' involves making contact with an individual who has i ...

and physical attacks.

Personal life

Xiong is married to Qian Liyun. She was arrested along with Shen Tong due to activity relating to the Democracy for China Fund in 1992; they were released and sent to the United States. In the United States, Liyun also joined the Army.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Xiong, Yan 1964 births Living people 20th-century evangelicals 21st-century evangelicals American evangelicals American military personnel of Chinese descent Candidates in the 2022 United States House of Representatives elections Chinese dissidents Chinese emigrants to the United States Chinese evangelicals Chinese human rights activists Converts to evangelical Christianity Covenant Theological Seminary alumni Gordon–Conwell Theological Seminary alumni Peking University alumni People from Loudi People from Shuangfeng County Trinity Evangelical Divinity School alumni United States Army chaplains United States Army personnel of the Iraq War University of North Carolina alumni Writers from Hunan Chinese foreign electoral intervention