Minorities Report: Indigenous Peoples in Socialist and Post–Socialist China
Thursday, 04 Nov 2021 at 6:00 pm – Sun Room, Memorial Union
2021 Phi Beta Kappa LectureWhat are “indigenous peoples†in China, and what are their worlds like? How did the Ming and Qing states manage non-Han indigenous peoples through the native hereditary chieftain system (known as the tusi system)? How did the socialist state create a nation of 56 “nationalities,†and what were its policies towards so-called “minority nationalities� What is the current state’s stance towards minority ethnic groups, and how is it transforming? This talk attempts to answer these questions.
Dr. Erik Mueggler is a Professor of Anthropology at the University of Michigan, affiliated with the University’s Center for Chinese Studies and the Interdepartmental Doctoral Program in Anthropology and History. His research covers a variety of topics in social and cultural theory, focusing on the politics of ghosts, the history of natural history, and the ritualization of death in the border regions of China.
Stay for the entire event, including the brief question-and-answer session that follows the formal presentation. Most events run 75 minutes.
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