Although contemporary China is a repressive state, protests and demonstrations have increased almost tenfold between 2005 and 2015. This is an astounding statistic when one considers that Marxist-Leninist regimes of the past tolerated little or no public dissent. How can protests become more common as the state becomes more repressive? This collection helps to answer this compelling question through in-depth analyses of several Chinese protest movements and state responses. The chapters examine the opportunities and constraints for protest mobilization, and explains their importance for understanding contemporary Chinese society.
Hank Johnston is Professor in the Department of Sociology at San Diego State University. He holds the Hansen Chair of Peace and Nonviolence Studies and coordinates the Peace Corps Prep Program at SDSU. Sheldon X. Zhang is Professor in the School of Criminology and Justice Studies at the University of Massachusetts. He is currently serving as an expert consultant to several organizations such as the International Labor Organization, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Freedom Fund, and Walk Free Foundation.
Part I. The Landscape of Protest and Resistance in China 1. Nonviolent Protest in China: Repertories of Resistance and Repression, Hank Johnston and Sheldon Zhang 2. Popular Protests in China, 2000-2019, Chih-Jou Jay Chen 3. Repertoires of Resistance in a Three-Gorges-Dam Migrants' Petitioning Campaign, Wing-Chung Ho Part II. Political Opportunities and Constraints 4. Resistance and the Exclusion of Civic Activism, Xi Chen 5. Bureaucrat-Assisted Contention in China, Kevin J. O'Brien, Lianjiang Li and Mingxing Liu 6. Soft Repression and Protest Demobilization, Yue Xie Part III. Environmental Protest 7. Mobilizing Environmental Protests in China, Setsuko Matsugawa 8. Brokering and Buffering Mechanisms: Participation in Environmental Protests, Yang Zhang Part IV. Hong Kong 9. Hong Kong's Anti-Extradition Movement Learned the Lesson of the Umbrella Movement, Ming-shou Ho 10. Hong Kong's Tiananmen Vigil: Collective Identity and Mechanisms of Memory, Edmund Cheng and Samson Yuen Part V. Religion, Protest, and the State 11. The Public Transcript and the Rise and Shutdown of China's Protestant 'Urban Churches', Carsten Vala 12. Religion and Participation in Protest Movements, Chengzhi Yi, Geping Qiu and Tao Liang
