Nationalism 1

What is nationalism? 2

3 conceptualizations A doctrine that holds that the nation should command the first loyalty of its people A movement to achieve a strong and independent nation A sense of common identity and common fate shared by members of the nation—often in opposition to some “other” outside reference group 3

What constitutes the Chinese nation? Definition of nation: a cultural community that is or seeks to become a political community as well Constructed Contested 4

Nationalism as a constructed concept: Change over time Yinan He Pre-1949 era (review) Nationalist ideology Emphasized post-1937 Japanese invasion Mao era Communist ideology Anti-KMT, anti-Capitalist Post-Mao era Nationalist ideology Anti-Japanese 5

Nationalism as a contested concept: Who is “the nation”? Suisheng Zhao: cross-cutting variants Ethnic nationalism Han Pragmatic nationalism State defined by territorial/political borders CCP as representative of national interests Liberal nationalism Strengthen state through democratic practices Nativism Pro-(Chinese) tradition, anti-foreign Anti-traditionalism Tradition as source of weakness, pro-foreign 6

7 Yang Liwei gets a warm welcome from 150 students from Taiwan at the China Space Center on February 7, 2004 Nationalism as a contested concept: Who is “the nation”?

How is nationalism being used? Political purposes Source of legitimacy in authoritarian regimes Nationalism Making the country wealthy and strong Defending national unity, national interests Examples from other cases Latin America’s authoritarian period G. O’Donnell “lo popular” Alternatives Economic growth Stability (avoiding “chaos”) 8

Political purposes of anti- foreign nationalism (digression) mongering-101-anti-china-campaign-ads/ mongering-101-anti-china-campaign-ads/ ml ml 9

Sources of nationalism Popular (bottom-up) State-led “The rage of China’s crowds is genuine, and its roots lie in China’s nationalist ideology. The Chinese Communist Party uses its educational and propaganda systems to socialize citizens into a particular understanding of history. Maoist triumphalism has been eclipsed since the mid-1990s by a new ‘victim narrative’ about Chinese suffering” Gries NYT 8/23/12 10

Sources of nationalism What’s behind popular (bottom-up) nationalist sentiment Official textbooks Japanese Chinese 11 Shanghai 2005 protest over Japanese textbooks

Comparative context 12 Korea 2005 protest over Japanese textbooks

Sources of nationalism 13 What’s behind popular (bottom-up) nationalist sentiment –Official monuments –He, “from the mid- 1980s, the government built war museums of Japanese atrocities and designated them as patriotic education bases…”

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Sources of nationalism What’s behind popular (bottom-up) nationalist sentiment Official media Unofficial media Ability vs. will to control 15 Shanghai 2005 protest over Japanese textbooks

Sources of nationalism Role of media China Digital Times September 19, 2012 blocked on Sina Weibo Anti- Japan Protests:SinaWeibo JapanProtests - anti-Japan ( 反日 )anti-Japan - anti-Japan ( 抗日 ) - smash + car ( 砸 + 车 ): Protesters have been vandalizing and destroying Japanese cars. One city went so far as to ban Japanese cars from the road in order to protect the owners.ban Japanese cars from the road 16

Implications of popular nationalism Primary role—domestic legitimacy Secondary role—domestic influences on foreign policy He Yinan Diaoyu Islands East/South China Sea resources Oil, gas Fishing, etc. 17

Implications of popular nationalism China's anti-Japanese rallies turn violent September 16, :10 PM Japan's move to nationalize a group of tiny islands in the East China Sea has sparked massive demonstrations on mainland China against anything associated with Japan, including sushi shops, factories, and Japanese-brand cars. Lucy Craft reports. ch/?id= n 18

Reading discussion Yinan He Popular nationalism constrains the state Jessica Weiss State allows popular nationalism as signaling device Nationalist protest = “mechanism by which authoritarian leaders can signal ex ante” to foreign leaders commitment to foreign policy position 19

Reading discussion Jessica Weiss “Governments choose to Suppress Tolerate Stage-manage Manufacture (“gin-up”)protest 20

Reading discussion Jessica Weiss “green light” to protests  “red light” to protests  21

Reading discussion Jessica Weiss Protest policy as signal to other countries “green light” to protests  unwilling to compromise “red light” to protests  value int’l cooperation 22