A Study of Everyday Ethnicity and Urban Renewal in Hui Neighborhoods
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UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA GRADAUTE COLLEGE MODERNIZATION AND ETHNICITY IN CHINA: A STUDY OF EVERYDAY ETHNICITY AND URBAN RENEWAL IN HUI NEIGHBORHOODS A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE FACULTY in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPY By DAVID R. STROUP Norman, Oklahoma 2017 MODERNIZATION AND ETHNICITY IN CHINA: A STUDY OF EVERYDAY ETHNICITY AND URBAN RENEWAL IN HUI NEIGHBORHOODS A DISSERTATION APPROVED FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE BY ______________________________ Dr. Peter H. Gries, Chair ______________________________ Dr. Darren E. Purcell ______________________________ Dr. Ana Bracic ______________________________ Dr. R. Keith Gaddie ______________________________ Dr. J. Paul Goode © Copyright by DAVID R. STROUP 2017 All Rights Reserved. Acknowledgements There are many people I must thank. This dissertation is the culmination of six years of work, and along the way many people have offered help and support. I wish to recognize them all. First, I owe enormous thanks to the Fulbright program, IIE, and the U.S. Department of State, without whom this research would not have been possible. I am grateful for the generous funding that allowed me to carry out my field research. In particular, I am thankful to Anita X. Chan and Serena Bing Han from the Beijing Fulbright office for working so hard, and always being willing to offer me help while in the field. I am also grateful to Minzu University (Zhongyang Minzu Daxue, 中央民族大 学) for sponsoring me while in the field, and housing me while in Beijing. In particular, I owe thanks to Ding Hong for serving as my sponsoring professor. Professor Ding’s willingness to introduce me to local points of contact at fieldsites outside of Beijing proved invaluable, and I’m incredibly grateful. This dissertation was researched, and written in many places. I would be remiss if I didn’t thank the staff of Great Leap Brewery #6, the Arrow Factory Taproom, and Café Zarah in Beijing; The Puli Tower Starbucks in Jinan; Greenhouse Café in Xining; and Gray Owl Coffee in Norman for providing the space to plan, to think, and to write. There are many people who helped me in various way while I collected data in the field. Without their generosity, and helpfulness, I would never have been able to complete this project. I owe thanks to many people. iv To Ma Lianjun, Xing Fei, Fa BeiBei, and Gao (Alvin) Guanglong, thank you for your friendship, and your help. It is because of friends like you that Jinan has always felt like home to me. To WeiWei, thank you for being a true friend, for treating like family, and for never failing to greet me at the front door of his restaurant with a cold beer. To Yang Yang, Ma Lai’En, and Ma Qian, thank you for helping me both during my preliminary study in finding case sites, and later during my year in the field. I could not have done this work without your help in logistics, planning, and the introductions to the sites that you all gave me. To Ma Jianfu, whose passion and enthusiasm for field research is contagious and unparalleled, thank you for taking me out to explore markets, visit country mosques, sample the best in Yinchuan’s local food, and teaching me that, to really do fieldwork, “you have to get down to the ground, and see how people live." Thank you for making sure that I had everything I needed, and for sharing so many opportunities with me. To Ma Chengjun, whose kindness, openness and generosity I can only hope to one day equal, thank you for making so many introductions, fielding so many clarifying questions, sharing your knowledge about Qinghai, and always being willing to chat about basketball. I’m honored to have been able to work with you. To Niu Xuan, thank you for providing an example of excellent scholarship, for helping me meet so many people, for helping me understand Xining, and for generously loaning me her bicycle for use in town. v To Matt Sheehan, thank you for patiently sharing tips on how to do interviews, introducing me to Baolong and family, taking the time to meet up for beers every now and again. Thanks for all your help and advice. To my dear friends, and fellow Beijing academic compatriots, David Porter, Jesse Watson, Minnie Inwald, James McGlone, Yining Lin, Liz Emrich, Fiona Cunningham, Samantha Vortherms, and Ana Huang, I have so much to thank you for. Thank you for visiting in Jinan. And in Yinchuan. And Xining. Thank you for rounds at Great Leap, and for late night shaokao after the Cellar Door. Thank you for Christmas potlucks in Sanlitun, and picnics on top of guardhouses on the Wild Wall. Thank you for fascinating conversations about jingju, sacred mockingbirds, hip-hop, and history. Thank you for the Provincial Cuisine Club. My year in the field was one of the greatest adventures of my life. Thank you all for being there to be such a huge part of it. To Hannah Theaker, thank you for coming along on yak-filled excursions into rural Qinghai to visit country mosques, and numerous impromptu walking tours of Xining looking for the best places to eat halal food. Thanks for all of your consultation and feedback during the writing of this dissertation, and insisting that I get my historical references right. I’ve also been extremely lucky to have excellent academic help and guidance while preparing for, and finishing up this project. There are many people to whom I am grateful. To Jeff Alexander, Cathy Brister, Katelyn Burks, and Chelsea Childs, thank you for everything you do for the department, and for helping to make sure that absent- vi minded grad students, like me, get through all the bureaucracy and fine print that graduate school requires. I’m truly grateful. To Alisa Fryar, thank your advice and counsel on how to navigate the process of applying for jobs, and professional development. I’m truly grateful that you took the time to help me, and were invested in my success, despite having never had me as a student. To Guangtian Ha, thank you for patiently answering my many inquiries on all matters relating to Islam in China, and for being one of the genuinely nicest people in academia, as well as a fantastic scholar. To Mark Frazier, thank you for providing feedback on various aspects of my scholarship, and for teaching me the foundations of state-society relations that forms the scaffolding on which much of this project is built. To Lu Yuan, thank you for introducing me to vastness and diversity of China during my time in Kunming on study abroad with SIT. The lessons I learned in Yunnan lit the fire that made me want to study ethnic politics in China. Thank you for helping me start what will surely be a lifelong adventure. To Shelley Rigger, who taught me almost everything I know about Chinese politics as an undergrad at Davidson College, thank you for encouraging me to pursue a doctorate, for helping me to pursue the study of a country and a subject I was truly passionate about, and for being an inspiring teacher. I would have taken the same path were it not for your guidance. vii There are many friends in Oklahoma and elsewhere who have helped me through my six years as a student at OU. Without them, and their support, this process would have been much more difficult. To Zeke Goggin, my oldest friend, I give thanks for many reasons. Thanks for being there with me to slog through this dissertation process together. To Chris Elford, thanks for being a great friend, and a constant source of consultation on all matters pertaining to China, Chinese language, and Chinese culture throughout my career in graduate school. I greatly appreciate being able to count on your help sounding out ideas. To Rebecca Roe and David Conway, thank you for being my travel buddies on so many of these adventures in the Middle Kingdom. Thank you for coming along for the camping in yurts on the steppe, and the camel rides through the Gobi Desert, as well as for allowing me to drag you along to tour yet another mosque on our travels. I couldn’t ask for better company. To Victoria Bautista for being a pen-pal during my time in the field, and a great friend back in Norman. Thanks for many great conversations, and for your support and affirmation. To Tyler and Krystal Camarillo for their generosity and friendship. Thanks for all the times you were such gracious hosts, and opened up your home for celebrations both large and small. To Periloux Peay, J.D. Rackey, Edgar Zamora, Lihui Zhang, Derek Steiger, Eli Potts, Tao Wang, Nathan Kelly, and Jason Pudlo, thank you for your friendship throughout my time at OU. Graduate school can be a stressful and emotionally viii challenging time. Without people like you to celebrate, commiserate, and share my time with, I can’t imagine how I would have made it through. To Jamie Smith, many thanks for being a constant friend throughout this process. I’m grateful that you were always someone I could turn to for advice about teaching, research, the job market, and so many other things. I’m also grateful that you were always there to share a laugh, or blow of some steam with. To Tyler and Michelle Hughes, thank you for your constant encouragement and friendship. Many of my fondest memories of Norman are of hanging out on Saturday afternoons, watching football, talking politics, and enjoying your company.