XI'AN, July 6 (Xinhua) -- Chu Xiaobo, vice president of Peking University, recently presented special gifts in Yan'an in northwest China's Shaanxi for the descendants of U.S. journalist Edgar Snow: peach leaves gathered beside Snow's grave at the university in Beijing.
Chu hopes the leaves will accompany them as they witness the vibrant transformation of today's northern Shaanxi, where Snow once conducted in-depth interviews. This evocative moment took place during a visit themed "Retracing Snow's Route" from July 3 to 5.
After months of interviews in Yan'an in the 1930s on the arid Loess Plateau, Snow turned his experiences into "Red Star Over China," a book that brought the remote yet resilient land to international audiences and, for the first time, fully and honestly presented the Communist Party of China (CPC) to the world.
The three-day event brought together more than 50 Chinese and foreign participants, including descendants of the renowned American journalist, to visit historical sites in Yan'an. The visit coincides with the 90th anniversary of the victory of the Long March of the CPC-led Red Army this year.
Steeped in revolutionary history, Yan'an is home to 445 revolutionary sites, 19 revolutionary memorial halls and 43,000 revolutionary cultural relics, a powerful draw for tourists seeking to connect with the past.
Against this historical backdrop, Ren Weidong, deputy editor-in-chief of Xinhua News Agency, said at the thematic session that the visit aims to feel the enduring spiritual legacy left by Snow and expects more "Snows of the new era" to step into China to enhance civilizational exchange and mutual learning.
Samuel Maclean, a relative of Edgar Snow, read a message from Snow's daughter Sian Snow, conveying her deep love and fond remembrance of her father.
Maclean said that honoring Edgar Snow is not only to remember what he did in 1936, but to practice the same courage today -- the courage to travel with an open mind, to listen carefully, to ask difficult questions with humility.
Sun Hua, director of the China Center for Edgar Snow Studies at Peking University, described truth-seeking, an equal perspective, and devotion as Snow's most precious spiritual legacy. "The quality of 'going to the scene to see for oneself' is more scarce and precious today than ever before," Sun said.
Building on this, youth representatives from Peking University said that the spirit of Snow is defined by sincerity, sympathy, and an unremitting pursuit of truth that transcends cultural divides. They called for upholding confidence and openness while respecting diverse cultures.
The event was organized by the Xinhua Institute, a think tank affiliated with Xinhua News Agency, and the School of Journalism and Communication and the China Center for Edgar Snow Studies at Peking University. ■
