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The people’s challenge to the government was reflexive. They fought to survive. Nevertheless, the historic implication of their resistance was significant. For the first time since the peasant rebellion of 1894, the people had seized a region and were ready to forge a new order on their own. Slowly, the people of Kwangju began to realize the significance of the liberation they had won. Everywhere, people talked about what they had done during the uprising and what they should do now. Kŭmnam Avenue was already clean early that morning. All the debris was cleared and carted away by commandeered military trucks. Tow trucks pulled the burnt husks of vehicles off the streets. Only the ginkgo trees lining the avenue showed the scars of battle: the clouds of tear gas had defoliated the trees.
Lee Jai-eui, Kwangju Diary: Beyond Death, Beyond the Darkness of the Age