Cancelled - "Everyday Democracy" by Anthony J. Spires

Chair and discussant: Chloé Froissart

Wondering whether democratic values can take hold in a seemingly intractable and ever-deepening authoritarian state? Anthony Spires new book on China– Everyday Democracy – gives some clues. At its heart, the book aims to answer this question: In a society where virtually all major social institutions – from schools to workplaces to government – are stitched together with the heavy threads of authoritarian rule, can civil society associations still be expected to serve as large free schools of democracy?

Anthony Spires argues that YES, even in the world’s largest authoritarian state, bottom-up voluntary associations can indeed nurture the skills and habits of democracy. Although they are clearly going against the grain, in 'Bridges' and 'Together' - two youth-led, youth-based voluntary associations I’ve followed since 2005 - democratic values like equality, mutual respect, and dignity have motivated idealistic young people to invent new anti-authoritarian practices and norms. The democratic organizational culture of these bottom-up groups draws a sharp contrast to professionalized NGOs and GONGOs in China, where hierarchy, autocratic leadership, and the stifling of dissent are the clear norms (despite grumblings from ‘those below’). 

Bio

Anthony J. Spires is Associate Professor at The University of Melbourne’s Centre for Contemporary Chinese Studies. His research focuses on the development of civil society in China, including philanthropy and the cultures of non-profit organisations. He co-edited the volume, Authoritarianism and Civil Society in Asia, in 2022, and Varieties of Civil Society Across Asia in 2024. He is the author of Global Civil Society and China (Cambridge University Press, 2024) and Everyday Democracy: Civil Society, Youth, and the Struggle against Authoritarian Culture in China (Columbia University Press, 2024).