Xi & Mao
on April 4, 2016
Xi and Mao posters for sale, 2015.
Toast between Xi Jinping and Wang Qishan
on April 4, 2016
President Xi Jinping (right) and Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection Wang Qishan toast with high-ranking officials at a dinner marking the 64th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China at the Great Hall of the People on September 30, 2013 in Beijing. On October 1, 1949, Chinese leader Mao Zedong stood at the Tiananmen Rostrum to declare the founding of the Republic.
Crackdown in China: Worse and Worse
on April 4, 2016
“
As a liberal, I no longer feel I have a future in China,” a prominent Chinese think tank head in the process of moving abroad recently lamented in private. Such refrains are all too familiar these days as educated Chinese professionals express growing alarm over their country’s future. Indeed, not since the 1970s when Mao still reigned and the Cultural Revolution still raged has the Chinese leadership been so possessed by Maoist nostalgia and Leninist-style leadership.
Meet ‘Depth of Field’: The Month’s Best Chinese Photojournalism
on April 3, 2016
Welcome to ChinaFile’s inaugural “Depth of Field” column. In collaboration with Yuanjin Photo, an independent photo blog published by photographers Yan Cong and Ye Ming on the Chinese social media platform WeChat, we will highlight new and newsworthy photojournalism published in Chinese media by Chinese photographers. For each column, Yan, Ye, and ChinaFile’s David M. Barreda choose one image from each featured body of work, describe the project, and provide a link to the original piece.
Reality Show Singer Breaks China's Cultural Revolution Taboo
on April 1, 2016
Yang Le sings of how he lost his father in Mao’s crackdown on perceived enemies 50 years ago.
No April Fooling Please, We’re Chinese
on April 1, 2016
Chinese state news agency Xinhua warned against people using “Fools’ Day” to start or spread rumors online.
A Dull Roar from a Hungry Chinese Lion
on April 1, 2016
Chinese construction companies loaded up on machinery as part of a massive stimulus package. With a slowing economy, developers face mountains of debt.
China’s Rural Youngsters Drop Out of School at Alarming Rate
Research Shows Problem Stems from Unequal Resource Distribution
on April 1, 2016
Like many other teenagers in his village in the mountains of the northwestern province of Shaanxi, Chen Youliang decided to quit school early so he could follow in the footsteps of his migrant worker parents and find a job in a big city.
Chen, who left school at 17 and is now 20, works as a cook in a small restaurant in Xi’an, the provincial capital. He says he wants to learn a skill so he can have a different career, but acknowledges that will be difficult. “Very few who leave (school) for a job can resume their studies,” he said.
Love and Sex Neglected | The Paper
on April 1, 2016
Chen goes behind-the-scenes with Taiwanese sex therapist Tong Haozhen at her therapy center in Zhuhai, Guangdong province. Tong’s work is considered bold and novel in a country that lacks much formal sex education and where open discussions of the topic are rare.
The Green-Skinned Trains | Tencent
on April 1, 2016
Qian, a hotel electrician in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, has spent eight years photographing train passengers on the country’s iconic “green-skinned” trains, so called for their green exterior paint. These old iron roosters, which began to hit China’s rails in the 1950s, are disappearing as high-speed trains replace them.
