Survival as Citizenship, or Citizenship as Survival? Imagined and Transient Political Groups in Urban China

Tom Cliff; Kan Wang

doi:10.1007/978-981-10-6337-4_3

Survival as Citizenship, or Citizenship as Survival? Imagined and Transient Political Groups in Urban China

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Abstract

Is it the quest for survival, rather than the quest for citizenship per se, that drives enactments of citizenship? This chapter examines the complex relationship between survival and citizenship through a longitudinal case study of a rural migrant workersâ€™ NGO in peri-urban Beijing, finding that survival and citizenship are virtually inseparable: one often follows, or is seen to follow, from the other. Contesting citizenship brings political risk. In this case, the survival strategies taken by the NGO to hedge against such risk cause people with diverse natural loyalties to enact citizenship-by-extension-of-citizenship-to-others. The result is an enlarged â€œpolitical groupâ€ with a particularly high level of political potency.

Original language	English
Title of host publication	The Living Politics of Self-Help Movements in East Asia
Editors	T Cliff, T Morris-Suzuki & S Wei
Place of Publication	Singapore
Publisher	Palgrave Macmillan
Pages	29-55
Edition	1st
ISBN (Print)	9789811063374
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-6337-4_3
Publication status	Published - 2018

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10.1007/978-981-10-6337-4_3

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title = "Survival as Citizenship, or Citizenship as Survival? Imagined and Transient Political Groups in Urban China",

abstract = "Is it the quest for survival, rather than the quest for citizenship per se, that drives enactments of citizenship? This chapter examines the complex relationship between survival and citizenship through a longitudinal case study of a rural migrant workers{\^a}€{\texttrademark} NGO in peri-urban Beijing, finding that survival and citizenship are virtually inseparable: one often follows, or is seen to follow, from the other. Contesting citizenship brings political risk. In this case, the survival strategies taken by the NGO to hedge against such risk cause people with diverse natural loyalties to enact citizenship-by-extension-of-citizenship-to-others. The result is an enlarged {\^a}€{\oe}political group{\^a}€ with a particularly high level of political potency.",

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T1 - Survival as Citizenship, or Citizenship as Survival? Imagined and Transient Political Groups in Urban China

AU - Cliff, Tom

AU - Wang, Kan

PY - 2018

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N2 - Is it the quest for survival, rather than the quest for citizenship per se, that drives enactments of citizenship? This chapter examines the complex relationship between survival and citizenship through a longitudinal case study of a rural migrant workersâ€™ NGO in peri-urban Beijing, finding that survival and citizenship are virtually inseparable: one often follows, or is seen to follow, from the other. Contesting citizenship brings political risk. In this case, the survival strategies taken by the NGO to hedge against such risk cause people with diverse natural loyalties to enact citizenship-by-extension-of-citizenship-to-others. The result is an enlarged â€œpolitical groupâ€ with a particularly high level of political potency.

AB - Is it the quest for survival, rather than the quest for citizenship per se, that drives enactments of citizenship? This chapter examines the complex relationship between survival and citizenship through a longitudinal case study of a rural migrant workersâ€™ NGO in peri-urban Beijing, finding that survival and citizenship are virtually inseparable: one often follows, or is seen to follow, from the other. Contesting citizenship brings political risk. In this case, the survival strategies taken by the NGO to hedge against such risk cause people with diverse natural loyalties to enact citizenship-by-extension-of-citizenship-to-others. The result is an enlarged â€œpolitical groupâ€ with a particularly high level of political potency.

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PB - Palgrave Macmillan

CY - Singapore

ER -

Survival as Citizenship, or Citizenship as Survival? Imagined and Transient Political Groups in Urban China

Abstract

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