Chinese Linguist Who Created Pinyin Now a Political Dissident

Most Chinese American kids who inevitably take Chinese courses in high school or college learn pinyin, a phonetic way to record Chinese sounds to the Westernized alphabet. NPR has recently published an article on its 105-year-old creator, Zhou Youguang: “[He] has become a thorn in the government’s side. Zhou has published an amazing 10 books since he turned 100, some of which have been banned in China. These, along with outspoken views on the Communist Party and the need for democracy in China, have made him a “sensitive person” — a euphemism for a political dissident.”