Law student inspired by Tienamen Square

by Jeff Bendix

For many students attending law school, concepts like freedom of speech and freedom of assembly are high-sounding abstractions. But they are a lot more than that for CWRU law school graduate Junxia Tang Jernejcic. She knows what it's like to live without them.

A native of the People's Republic of China, Jernejcic was active in the democracy movement which culminated in the massacre of students and others in Tienamen Square in June of 1989. At the time she was a student at Hunan Medical University, in central China, earning a bachelor's degree in medicine.

"I organized teams of students to go out in the streets and give speeches about democracy and explain what we were doing," she says. "Many of the people who heard us were very moved by what we were saying. They tried to give us money, which we wouldn't take, or they would bring food and drinks."

Jernejcic was on a train bound for Beijing to take part in the Tienamen demonstrations, but the train never reached its destination. It was blocked by a faction of students intent on disrupting China's economic and transportation system.

"It was probably lucky for me that I couldn't get there," she says.

Following the events at Tienamen, authorities everywhere in China cracked down on pro-democracy activists. Jernejcic organized an unofficial student group at the university, "Readers," dedicated to intellectual discussion. She also edited the group's newspaper.

"After June 4 the students were very depressed and lethargic," she recalls. "We had to get them out of that mood, but we also needed to avoid raising any direct political issues."

Although Jernejcic herself did not suffer any consequences from her actions, several of her friends at the university were barred from finishing their studies. And activists at other universities experienced worse.

Jernejcic moved to the United States early in 1997 to marry a medical student at Ohio State University who had been studying at the hospital where she worked.

"It was difficult to leave. I had developed a good relationship with my patients and colleagues, and of course my family was still there. They were not able to come to my wedding," she recalls.

Coming to the U.S. allowed Jernejcic to rethink her career goals. She found herself drawn towards law, in part because of the corruption she witnessed at the Chinese hospital, where Communist party officials received preferred treatment.

"I saw that to bring about real change you have to change the system, which you do through laws," she explains.

Still, the thought of studying law in a new language was intimidating. But after working at some other jobs and improving her English she decided to take the LSAT's, and apply to CWRU.

"I did a lot of background reading about the law before I started classes, and that was a big help," she says. She did well enough so that after her first year she was invited to join the CWRU Law Review, an honor usually extended to the to 10 percent of a first year class. In her third year she served as "Notes" editor on the Law Review.

Following graduation, Jernejcic will have a two-year clerkship with Federal District Court Judge Leslie Brooks Wells. After that she is mulling an offer from a Cleveland law firm, where she hopes to specialize in litigation.

"I discovered it's an aspect of the law I enjoy very much," she explains. If the past is any guide, there is little doubt she will excel.

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