Eliminate Sparrows campaign

Uncommon card · No. 88247

The Eliminate Sparrows campaign, also known as the Smash Sparrows campaign or Great Sparrow Campaign, was a part of the Four Pests campaign launched by Mao Zedong, the first leader of the People's Republic of China, executed nationwide during the Great Leap Forward. The aim of the campaign was to completely eliminate sparrows throughout China. The anti-sparrow policy was active from 1955 to 1960, with major implementation of the campaign starting in 1958. At least 200 million sparrows were killed nationwide in 1958; some sources say about 2.11 billion sparrows died. The campaign led to surging insect populations and poor harvests, and was one of the causes of the Great Chinese Famine, which lasted from 1959 to 1961 and killed millions of people.

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