Let Only Red Flowers Bloom: Identity And Belonging In Xi Jinping's China | Hoover Institution

Quick Overview

Emily Eso's book, "Let Only Red Flowers Bloom: Identity and Belonging in Xi Jinping's China," explores the multifaceted and diverse experiences of identity among ordinary Chinese citizens, arguing strongly that China is not a monolith but a complex entity with many differing visions for its development, revealed through personal stories spanning mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.

Key Points: Emily Eso's primary motivation in journalism and writing the book is to build empathy by getting access to intimate worlds of people grappling with how they want to live their lives in China. The book moves between personal stories and political context, covering diverse facets of identity including political/economic realities, freedom of expression, gender, religion, and ethnic identity. The title, "Let Only Red Flowers Bloom," is a quote referencing the cyclical nature of Chinese politics, contrasting the current environment with Mao's superficially open "Let 100 flowers bloom" slogan. Eso focuses on characters like a former state prosecutor turned human rights lawyer who gets disbarred, and a viral internet celebrity known as the 'scooter thief' (Joliti), illustrating diverse paths within China's controlled environment. Reporting from outside China became necessary after Eso was unable to return to the mainland, leading her to complete the draft in Taiwan, where she explored themes of Chinese versus Taiwanese identity. A key takeaway from the book is that "China is not a monolith," emphasizing that one person's or community's opinion differs vastly from another, even across the same city. Eso notes that foreign reporters of Chinese descent face more pushback, citing expectations to write or behave a certain way, and she felt more welcomed in Taiwan regarding her mixed identity than in Beijing.

Context: The session features NPR international correspondent Emily Eso discussing her book, "Let Only Red Flowers Bloom: Identity and Belonging in Xi Jinping's China," hosted by Francis Juhisgen at the Hoover Institution. Eso, who previously reported for the Financial Times and New York Times, shares her experiences covering China, Taiwan, and beyond, focusing on how ordinary citizens navigate issues of identity and belonging under Xi Jinping's leadership, starting from her move to China in 2015, just before the July 2015 crackdown on human rights lawyers.