On July 13, 2017 Bradley Gardner, a Research Fellow at the Independent Institute and a Foreign Service Officer with the US State Department, discussed his novel "China's Great Migration: How the Poor Built a Prosperous Nation". The Summer Institute students were able to meet with him and talk about the impact the migration had on China's economy. Below is a student's reflection on meeting with Bradley Gardner and their opinion on the migration.
Bradley Gardner’s new book, China’s Great Migration: How The Poor Built a Prosperous Nation, is not only an account of the most massive and profitable migration in human history, but also a recollection of Gardner’s first hand experience as a citizen and witness. What makes his book so compelling is his incredible insight and understanding of this phenomenon, only further validating to his meticulous research and expertise. His anecdote about his personal connections with his immigrant neighbors and how they were forced out by the Chinese government cemented the strength of his ethos. In addition, he lived in Beijing during its most important recent event, the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics, where he was exposed to all the oppression and pressure immigrants felt, which most of the time was hidden from the media and the general public. This level of knowledge and awareness allows Gardner to be the perfect candidate to tell the story that is unfolding in the heart of China.
This talk about the demographics of China felt very personal to me. I am of Chinese descent, specifically Southern China, from the province of Guangzhou. My grandparents were all immigrants to the United States, but for different reasons. Some of them fled from the Japanese who invaded their villages in the chaos of World War Two, and the others came for economic opportunity, following their family members who migrated before them. Although they immigrated across the Pacific, their motives and stories are very similar to the many millions of immigrants moving from the countryside to urban areas. Both my grandparents and the 753 million migrants came from the rural countryside, with a lack of higher education and social services. My grandparents left in wartime, where an looming enemy and a broken infrastructure were major push factors. Similarly, the great migration was caused by a war inside the Chinese government. Trying to recover from the horrible Cultural Revolution and Mao’s fascism, the government fought a war with the people to maintain its firm identity, at the expense of human rights and social services. The 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre serves as a reminder of the oppression the people faced in the fight for democracy and rights. America was an enigma to my grandparents, a far off mystical land that held the promise of opportunity and fortune. The success stories also came with cautionary tales of failure, but the risk was necessary to have a chance at a better future. Likewise, these rural migrants see the city as their chance to gain education, increased economic status, and social mobility in the cities, but are also aware of the risk of leaving the stability they have. But even if there is a chance that there is no room for them in the city, if environmental conditions and social services are discouraging, the allure and promise of the city is worth it. In the end, my grandparents dug their niche in the melting pot of America, ensuring their children and grandchildren to have the opportunity they worked so hard for. In the end, these migrants are creating an economic boom for China, and the majority of the money goes to them, fueling their socioeconomic ascent, and rewards their contributions to not only their country but to their future.
- Daniel Jai
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