Tocqueville 21 Podcast: China and Hong Kong, Society and Politics with Jeffrey Wasserstrom

Welcome back to the Tocqueville 21 Podcast!

Today we return to the vast topic of China, and more specifically, the topic of China’s domestic politics: the mechanisms through which the Chinese Communist Party legitimizes itself, how it asserts its rule both in the mainland and in Hong Kong, the lenses through which it can be viewed both by dissidents and by outside observers. Here to provide his insight is Professor Jeffrey Wasserstrom, who expertly threads the needle of a discussion that touches on everything from cyberpunk to K-Pop to bubble tea.

Jeffrey Wasserstrom is Chancellor’s Professor of History at UC Irvine and a Visiting Professor at Birkbeck College, University of London. His expertise is regularly sought after by newspapers and magazines, and he has published several books on the topic of China. His most recent books are Vigil: Hong Kong on the Brink (2020) and, as editor, The Oxford History of Modern China (2022).

We hope you enjoy this episode!