Urbanizing minority Minzu in the PRC: insights from the literature on settler colonialism

Wang, Ju-Han Zoe;Roche, Gerald

Abstract

This article provides a synthesis and critical review of the literature on urban minority minzu 民族 in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The vast majority of the Chinese-language literature on minorities in cities adopts a state-centric view through the lens of stability and integration, focusing on how minorities can adapt to urban life for the purpose of creating a “harmonized” society. This statist narrative not only denies the subjectivity of minorities in the city but also constrains the understandings of the dynamics of urban indigeneity. In this article, we draw on the literature of urban Indigenous peoples in settler colonial contexts to suggest new ways of examining the urban experience of minority minzu in the PRC. We suggest that this literature provides useful insights that help center the subjectivities and agency of Indigenous people in the PRC’s cities. Literature on urban minorities in the PRC can be expanded by engaging with the Indigenous

Journal

Modern China

Publication Name

Modern China

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0097-7004

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Sage Publications

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DOI

10.1177/0097700421995135