Between Family and State: An Ethnography of a Shanghai Neighborhood

This research explores the civil associations, community movements and practices of the local government in a Shanghai lilong neighborhood named Pingmin. By describing how these horizontal grassroots organizations and collective actions have been constructed, reconstructed, and interpreted since the 1980s, the presentation analyzes the inter-dependence between power and resistance implied in these associations and actions. Furthermore, this research argues that although these associations and movements do not challenge the existing authoritarian political system, they may lead to transformations in official discourse; strengthen individual rights; and promote the development of civil subjectivity in an urban community in contemporary China.

 

Zhu Jiangang teaches anthropology and social work in the School of Sociology and Anthropology at Sun Yat-sen University. He has served as Executive Dean of the School of Philanthropy at SYSU since 2011. He was a visiting scholar at Harvard University in 2007-2008 and is currently a Fulbright Scholar at the IU Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at IUPUI. Professor Zhu received his Ph.D. in Anthropology from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. His research focuses on civil society and philanthropy, community development, non-profit management, and social movements. Some of his major publications include Between the Family and the State: An Ethnography of Civil Associations and Community Movements in a Shanghai Neighborhood and Power of Action: Case Studies of Private Volunteer Organizations.