Overview

Becoming Activists in Global China is the first purely sociological study of the religious movement Falun Gong and its resistance to the Chinese state. The literature on Chinese protest has intensively studied the 1989 democracy movement while largely ignoring opposition by Falun Gong, even though the latter has been more enduring. This comparative study explains why the Falun Gong protest took off in diaspora and the democracy movement did not. Using multiple methods, Becoming Activists in Global China explains how Falun Gong's roots in proselytizing and its ethic of volunteerism provided the launch pad for its political mobilization. Simultaneously, diaspora democracy activists adopted practices that effectively discouraged grassroots participation. The study also shows how the policy goal of eliminating Falun Gong helped shape today's security-focused Chinese state. Explaining Falun Gong's two decades of protest illuminates a suppressed piece of Chinese contemporary history and advances our knowledge of how religious and political movements intersect.

Full Product Details

9781108482998

Table of Contents

Reviews

Advance praise: 'Junker's incisive analysis of the two largest and most organized citizen movements in China's reform era - Falun Gong and the post-1989 democracy movement - is an invaluable resource for scholars of contentious politics and state-society relations, as well as those seeking to understand the direction of politics within the overseas Chinese diaspora.' Carl Minzner, Fordham University School of Law, New York Advance praise: 'Becoming Activists in Global China is an extraordinarily interesting book. Employing impressive hermeneutic skills, Junker comes up with one eye-popping cultural interpretation after another. These empirical discoveries serve Junker's broader, theoretical ambition, which is to demonstrate that shared meanings - what he terms 'in-group culture' - play a much more consequential role in the formation of social movements that previous sociological thinking has allowed.' Jeffrey C. Alexander, Lillian Chavenson Saden Professor of Sociology, Yale University, Connecticut Advance praise: 'An excellent book, meticulously researched, clearly written, and theoretically path-breaking.' David A. Palmer, author of Qigong Fever: Body, Science and Utopia in China Advance praise: `Junker's incisive analysis of the two largest and most organized citizen movements in China's reform era - Falun Gong and the post-1989 democracy movement - is an invaluable resource for scholars of contentious politics and state-society relations, as well as those seeking to understand the direction of politics within the overseas Chinese diaspora.' Carl Minzner, Fordham University School of Law, New York Advance praise: `Becoming Activists in Global China is an extraordinarily interesting book. Employing impressive hermeneutic skills, Junker comes up with one eye-popping cultural interpretation after another. These empirical discoveries serve Junker's broader, theoretical ambition, which is to demonstrate that shared meanings - what he terms `in-group culture' - play a much more consequential role in the formation of social movements that previous sociological thinking has allowed.' Jeffrey C. Alexander, Lillian Chavenson Saden Professor of Sociology, Yale University, Connecticut Advance praise: `An excellent book, meticulously researched, clearly written, and theoretically path-breaking.' David A. Palmer, author of Qigong Fever: Body, Science and Utopia in China

Advance praise: 'Junker's incisive analysis of the two largest and most organized citizen movements in China's reform era - Falun Gong and the post-1989 democracy movement - is an invaluable resource for scholars of contentious politics and state-society relations, as well as those seeking to understand the direction of politics within the overseas Chinese diaspora.' Carl Minzner, Fordham University School of Law, New York Advance praise: 'Becoming Activists in Global China is an extraordinarily interesting book. Employing impressive hermeneutic skills, Junker comes up with one eye-popping cultural interpretation after another. These empirical discoveries serve Junker's broader, theoretical ambition, which is to demonstrate that shared meanings - what he terms 'in-group culture' - play a much more consequential role in the formation of social movements than previous sociological thinking has allowed.' Jeffrey C. Alexander, Lillian Chavenson Saden Professor of Sociology, Yale University, Connecticut Advance praise: 'An excellent book, meticulously researched, clearly written, and theoretically path-breaking.' David A. Palmer, author of Qigong Fever: Body, Science and Utopia in China Advance praise: `Junker's incisive analysis of the two largest and most organized citizen movements in China's reform era - Falun Gong and the post-1989 democracy movement - is an invaluable resource for scholars of contentious politics and state-society relations, as well as those seeking to understand the direction of politics within the overseas Chinese diaspora.' Carl Minzner, Fordham University School of Law, New York Advance praise: `Becoming Activists in Global China is an extraordinarily interesting book. Employing impressive hermeneutic skills, Junker comes up with one eye-popping cultural interpretation after another. These empirical discoveries serve Junker's broader, theoretical ambition, which is to demonstrate that shared meanings - what he terms `in-group culture' - play a much more consequential role in the formation of social movements than previous sociological thinking has allowed.' Jeffrey C. Alexander, Lillian Chavenson Saden Professor of Sociology, Yale University, Connecticut Advance praise: `An excellent book, meticulously researched, clearly written, and theoretically path-breaking.' David A. Palmer, author of Qigong Fever: Body, Science and Utopia in China

Author Information

Andrew Junker is Adjunct Assistant Professor in Sociology at The Chinese University of Hong Kong. He earned a Ph.D. from Yale University, Connecticut, where his research was awarded Yale's annual Sussman Award for best sociology dissertation. He is also a recipient of a National Science Foundation grant and a University of Chicago Harper Fellowship.

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available