Congratulations to Prof Qian Zhu on her new paper titled, “Exile to the Equator: Chinese Anti-Colonialism and Nationalism in Southeast Asia, 1939–1946”

Congratulations to Assistant Professor of History at Duke Kunshan University, Qian Zhu, who recently published a paper in the journal of China & Asia – A Journal in Historical Studies.

Read below to learn more about Prof Zhu’s paper and the “behind the scenes” interview.

Abstract

This paper discusses and compares the ideas of Chinese leftists in exile, as expressed in their publications and journals and in their anti-colonial activism in collaboration with the overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia from 1939 to 1946. Describing Chinese anti-colonialism and nationalism through a transnational conceptualization and an ethnographic approach, stories that occur “behind the scenes” enhance our ability to decode key words and reveal the complexities of concrete economic and political conflicts from multiple sources that involve migration, ethnicities, and capitalism. The class nature of Chinese anti-colonial internationalism that was forged during and after the Second World War was deeply embedded in the “liberal” discourses of freedom, democracy, equality, liberty, and women’s emancipation. It was also rooted in the mass politics of anti-capitalism, which was global in scope and fine-grained, local, and rooted in everyday life. The Chinese leftist geopolitical configuration of the “nations below the wind” and “the equator” enabled the perception of a proto-global South— South alliance as a world-historical force, with the dual goals of overturning unequal development and achieving an integrated path of anti-colonialism and national independence.

Read the full paper: Qian Zhu – Exile to the Equator: Chinese Anti-Colonialism and Nationalism in Southeast Asia, 1939–1946

Behind the Scenes with Qian Zhu

Could you tell us about your article and what inspired you to write it?

This paper discusses and compares the ideas of Chinese leftists in exile, as expressed in their publications and journals and in their anti-colonial activism in collaboration with the overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia from 1939 to 1946. Describing Chinese anti-colonialism and nationalism through a transnational conceptualization and an ethnographic approach, stories that occur “behind the scenes” enhance our ability to decode key words and reveal the complexities of concrete economic and political conflicts from multiple sources that involve migration, ethnicities, and capitalism. The class nature of Chinese anti-colonial internationalism that was forged during and after the Second World War was deeply embedded in the “liberal” discourses of freedom, democracy, equality, liberty, and women’s emancipation. It was also rooted in the mass politics of anti-capitalism, which was global in scope and fine-grained, local, and rooted in everyday life. The Chinese leftist geopolitical configuration of the “nations below the wind” and “the equator” enabled the perception of a proto-global South— South alliance as a world-historical force, with the dual goals of overturning unequal development and achieving an integrated path of anti-colonialism and national independence.

The research is to continue my research of Chinese leftism from 1919 to 1936 by focusing on the Chinese leftists’ experience and their political agenda in Southeast Asia.

What made you interested in researching in the topic of this article?

It’s the product of my research of Chinese leftism and China’s national formation in the 20th century.

What did you learn in the process of writing this?

I constantly were challenged by the newly found archives and the rich history of Chinese revolution as well as its worldwide impact  in the 20th century.

What are your next projects?

My next project is on community formation, housing for the poor and urbanization in the first half of 20th century China.

Biography

Qian Zhu holds a Ph.D in history from New York University. She is currently an assistant professor in History at DKU. Her research and teaching field is the 20th century China. Her book focuses on the history of progressive politics in China’s first half of the 20th century. In particular, her research looks into left-wing politics and a variety of social experiments in the 1920s-40s, which deeply engaged with the conceptualizations of freedom, liberty, equality, and emancipation. I am looking forward to work with you to tackle the unsettled question of “what is freedom?” and how the political thoughts of freedom were practiced by Chinese advocates in China and the abroad.