Community Volunteers' Associations in Contemporary Tianjin: multipurpose partners of the party–state
The Community Volunteers' Associations (CVAs) are among the oldest grassroots organizations in contemporary China and as such provide a valuable case for a study of China's fast-growing non-profit sector. The author defines CVAs as multipurpose partners of the party–state in its pursuit of social stability and maintenance of legitimacy. In this role, the CVAs have served three major tasks. They have provided social services, acted as a link between the party–state and urban residents, and served as a medium for shaping values. The article explores the definition and redefinition of these tasks as well as the actual operations of the associations since the late 1980s.
Charity paradigm change in contemporary China: From anti-socialist activity to civic duty
This article addresses a remarkable conceptual change in China: the replacement of the perception of charities as organizations associated with anti-governmental activity by one that views charities as organized expressions of civic duty. This shift occurred within a period of just 20 years. Following theories of public policy paradigm change, this study analyses the specific societal, institutional and rhetorical changes that were required for the rehabilitation of charity in China; the articulation of a blueprint for the new paradigm; and the implementation of the model in practice, focusing on attempts to foster a charitable spirit and culture. This study is based on official documents and articles in the People’s Daily (人民日报). Furthermore, the analysis is complemented by interviews with staff members of charity associations carried out in Tianjin in 2007 and 2008. The findings contribute to the broader discussion of the features of China’s civil society by elaborating on the boundaries of acceptable civic action. The study shows how the party-state has permitted the emergence of a space for the expression of a voluntary charitable spirit while still expecting that charitable spirit to be expressed within the confines of state-defined morally correct acts.
‘There is no race so wretched that there is not something out there that cares for them’: Multiculturalism, understanding, empathy and prejudice in Discworld
Multiculturalism is at the heart of Mel Gibson’s chapter. Arguing that stories situated in Ankh-Morpork, Discworld’s major capital and the focal point of many Discworld stories, in particular deal with the opportunities, problems and, sometimes, sheer craziness associated with multi- and cross-cultural debates and realities, Gibson draws on European models of multiculturalism. She analyses how, alongside debating the nature of prejudice and oppression, the City Watch stories in particular explore ways in which a multicultural space may work.