[2][3][4] Its name arose from the use of umbrellas as a tool for passive resistance to the Hong Kong Police Force's use of pepper spray to disperse the crowd during a 79-day occupation of the city demanding more transparent elections, which was sparked by the decision of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPCSC) of the People's Republic of China of 31 August 2014 that prescribed a selective pre-screening of candidates for the 2017 election of Hong Kong's chief executive.

[5][6] The movement consisted of individuals numbering in the tens of thousands who participated in the protests that began on 26 September 2014, although Scholarism, the Hong Kong Federation of Students, Occupy Central with Love and Peace (OCLP) are groups principally driving the demands for the rescission of the NPCSC decision.

[8][9][10][11][12] The name, Umbrella Revolution, [clarification needed][inconsistent] was later rejected by some prominent members and supporters of the Occupy Central campaign, fearing that the movement would be mistaken as espousing violent overthrow of government.

[18] On 23 October at the peak of Lion Rock, mountaineering enthusiasts "Spiderman" and his companions hung a giant banner "I need real universal suffrage", which made a sensation in Hong Kong; but on the next day it was dismantled by the government.

[23] In Taiwan's capital city Taipei, locals organised a solidarity protest, where participants were reported to have scuffled with Taiwanese police after crowding a Hong Kong trade office.

[25] At the East Asian Cup qualifying match against Hong Kong on 16 November, Taiwanese football fans waved yellow umbrellas in a show of support.

[26] In Singapore, hundreds of people participated in a candlelight vigil at Hong Lim Park on 1 October to show support to the Occupy Central protesters.

Nardo participated in a hunger strike, and unfurled a banner with "Support HK Umbrella Revolution" outside the hotel in which Communist Party general secretary Xi Jinping was scheduled to stay, but were banned from the G20 security zones, doubted by media Australia[clarification needed] losing its democracy.

[32] OCLP, the originators of the campaign, as well as the student groups – HKFS and Scholarism – adopted and adhered to the principle of non-violent civil disobedience and the willingness to assume the consequential legal responsibility.

[30][43][44] While the 3-day OCLP civil disobedience was due to start on 1 October to send a message without causing major disruption, students wanted immediate occupation and staged a sit-in on 26 September.

OCLP's hand was effectively forced by the turn of events, and their proclamation of the start of the civil disobedience campaign met with widespread criticism that the action was not "Occupy Central".

[45][46] The scale of the protests exceeded the expectations of most people, including the groups involved, and after police manifestly failed to contain and control the gathering crowds even through use of tear gas on 28 September,[47] demonstrators did not heed the advice of the HKFS and others to de-escalate to avoid the possibility of use of heavier weapons.

by anti-occupation protesters, OCLP leader, University of Hong Kong professor Benny Tai, as well as Lester Shum of the HKFS and Agnes Chow of Scholarism, urged immediate retreat from Mong Kok to regroup at Admiralty to avoid violence and bloodshed, but their calls were not heeded.

[52] Civic Passion, which denigrates moderates and has even denounced student leaders as "useless", saw its influence in the movement increase as time went by as ordinary suffragists drifted back to their daily lives.

Tai and fellow OCLP leader Chinese University of Hong Kong professor Chan Kin-man left due to exhaustion from attempting to exert a moderating influence on the more radical members of HKFS and hardline groups; third parties that acted as mediators were sidelined.

[53] Members of radical group Civic Passion broke into a side-entrance to the Legislative Council Complex in the early hours of 19 November, breaking glass panels with concrete tiles and metal barricades.

[73][74] Well-stocked supply stations dispensed water and other basic necessities such as toilet paper, saline solution, instant coffee and cereal bars free of charge.

[73] A study area was created, complete with desk lamps and Wi-Fi;[74][75][76] mobile phone charging stations were powered by electricity generators[74][77][78] and wind turbines.

[100][101][102] An image of Xi Jinping holding an umbrella that won a top photojournalism award in China inspired another bout of meme-creation, and has appeared on banners and cardboard cut-outs.

[105][106] Large crowds, ostensibly heeding a call from Chief Executive C. Y. Leung to return to the shops affected by the occupation, have appeared nightly in and around Sai Yeung Choi Street South (close to the former occupied site); hundreds of armed riot police charged demonstrators with shields, pepper spraying and wrestling a string of them to the ground.

[105][106] Nightly shopping tours continued in Mong Kok, tying up some 2500 police officers, ostensibly at the behest of C. Y. Leung to help restore the economy of the once-occupied areas.

[7] All of the OCLP trio have been targeted: Chan having banners denouncing him appear near his home, attempted hacking of his email, family members tailed, men staking out his house around the clock, receiving hate mail, death threats and even letters containing razor blades;[122] Tai having his email account hacked, receiving hate mail and nuisance telephone calls; Chu giving up using his mobile phone due to persistent crank or threatening calls, his son being followed and filmed when making school runs, the photographs being posted up subsequently near his home and church;[7] Wong having had his telephone numbers (and that of his mother) and his purported address made public.

[129] Groups of anti-Occupy Central activists including triad members and locals attacked suffragists on 3 October, tearing down their tents and barricades in Mong Kok and Causeway Bay.

[123] During a police operation to clear protesters on 15 October, Civic Party member Ken Tsang was assaulted in an act graphically filmed and broadcast on local television.

[150] Scholarism member Tiffany Chin (錢詩文) was detained by public security bureau officers as she landed in Kunming on a family visit on 18 February 2015; her baggage and those of her mother were searched, and officials pored over her notebooks.

[152] In a second case, a 14-year-old female who drew a chalk flower onto the Lennon Wall on 23 December 2014 was arrested on suspicion of criminal damage, detained by police for 17 hours, and then held against her will in a children's home for 20 days, but was never charged with any crime.

[155][156][157] On 19 January, another magistrate rescinded the protection order[158][159] for the girl–now commonly known as "Chalk Girl" (粉筆少女)–however overall handling of the situation by police and government officials raised broad concerns.

[164][165] Wong and two other prominent Hong Kong pro-democracy student leaders, Nathan Law and Alex Chow, were sentenced to six to eight months' imprisonment on 17 August 2017 for occupying Civic Square at the Central Government Complex at Tamar site.

[169] On 1 October 2017, National Day of the People's Republic of China, a demonstration under the rubric "Anti Authoritarian Rule" again called for release of jailed activists, as well as demanding resignation of the Chief Executive Carrie Lam and Secretary for Justice Rimsky Yuen.

[177] On 5 October 2017, the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) Chair US Senator Marco Rubio and co-chair US Representative Chris Smith announced their controversial intention to nominate Joshua Wong, Nathan Law, Alex Chow and the entire Umbrella Movement for the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize, for "their peaceful efforts to bring political reform and protect the autonomy and freedoms guaranteed Hong Kong in the Sino-British Joint Declaration".