“Party” Politics: Ethnic Minority Holiday Celebrations and Ethnic Identity Reinforcement in the People's Republic of China

This dissertation examines the interplay between state coercion and ethnic minority responses to that coercion in China. It asks two questions: Why does the Chinese party-state make concessions toward ethnic groups it actively represses? How do ethnic minorities respond to these actions? This project focuses on ethnic minority holiday celebrations, arguing that the party-state co-opts these celebrations as a subtle form of coercion. In response, ethnic minorities celebrate their holidays in accordance with their own traditions. Notably, unlike government-sponsored holiday activities, private ethnic minority holiday celebrations are devoid of politics. Their response, however, makes a political statement. Through a concept called apolitical politics, this project shows that minorities challenge the meaning of state-sponsored celebrations by regarding their own celebrations as apolitical. While the minorities' actions are not political from their perspective, the state interprets them that way. This research makes a contribution to the political science literature on protest and resistance, demonstrating that non-political actions in highly politicized societies serve as a form of covert protest. The first chapter describes the relevant context, discussing the ethnic classification projects in the USSR and China as well as the politicization of ethnicity. It is in this context that non-political actions become significant. Three empirical case studies that focus on Tibetan New Year in Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Qinghai Province, Persian New Year in Kashgar, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, and the Naadam Festival in Darhan Muminggan United Front Banner in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region illustrate the argument. The study concludes with avenues for further research and additional insights into state control and ordinary citizen responses.

Author

• Quatrini, Allison

Language

• en

Keyword

• Uyghur
• resistance
• Tibetan
• ethnic minorities
• China
• protest

Date created

• 2017

Type of Work

• Dissertation

License

• All rights reserved

Rights statement

• In Copyright

GW Unit

• Political Science

Degree

• Ph.D.

Advisor

• Dickson, Bruce J

Committee Member(s)

• Millward, James A
• Balla, Steven J
• Hale, Henry E
• Roberts, Sean R

Persistent URL

•  https://scholarspace.library.gwu.edu/etd/r494vk44d