can't see the images? view this message online.

Center for Policy Studies
Public Affairs Discussion Group

China’s One Child Policy


Lihong Shi, Ph.D. - Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Case Western Reserve University
Friday February 5, 2016
12:30-1:30 p.m.
Dampeer Room
Kelvin Smith Library
Case Western Reserve University


Dear Colleagues:

In 1979, Deng Xiaoping announced one of the more dramatic examples of government policy in recent history: one child per family.

It was dramatic not just for its goal – which Deng described as to ensure that, "the fruits of economic growth are not devoured by population growth" -- but for the government intervention into everyday life that it required. Critics viewed it as a gross violation of human rights. But that is probably not why, in October of 2015, Communist Party leadership announced the policy would be reversed, with all married couples allowed to have two children. Instead, the leadership has worried about the demographic profile of China's population, the country growing old before it could get rich, and not having enough workers, relative to retirees, to sustain economic growth.

Yet in order to predict the future and the effect of the policy change, we should first understand the past and present. Lihong Shi's research has focused on why peasant couples in rural Northeast China, who were allowed to have a second child if the first was a girl, often choose not to try to have the son that, under traditional norms, they would have wanted. She will discuss how the one-child policy was formulated and implemented, reactions of the Chinese population to how it was implemented, the demographic consequences and social impact of the policy, and what the future may bring.

All best regards,
Joe White
Luxenberg Family Professor of Public Policy and Director, Center for Policy Studies


About Our Guest

Lihong Shi studies reproductive politics and family and gender relations, particularly reproductive choice and family change under China’s birth-control policy. She examines an emerging reproductive choice in rural China where a large number of couples have decided to have only one daughter even though the modified policy allows them to have a second child. By delving into the socioeconomic factors contributing to this drastic reproductive decision, she looks at significant changes occurring within the Chinese families. She is also interested in demographic consequences of China’s birth-control policy, such as population aging and sex ratio imbalance.

Where We Meet

The Friday Public Affairs Lunch convenes each Friday when classes are in session, from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. Our programs are open to all and no registration is required. We usually meet in the Dampeer Room of Kelvin Smith Library. The Dampeer Room is on the second floor of the library. If you get off the elevators, turn right, pass the first bank of tables, and turn right again. Occasionally we need to use a different room; that will always be announced in the weekly e-mails.

Parking Possibilities

The most convenient parking is the lot underneath Severance Hall. We regret that it is not free. From that lot there is an elevator up to street level (labeled as for the Thwing Center); it is less than 50 yards from that exit to the library entrance. You can get from the Severance garage to the library without going outside. Near the entry gates - just to the right if you were driving out - there is a door into a corridor. Walk down the corridor and there will be another door. Beyond that door you'll find the entrance to an elevator which goes up to an entrance right inside the doors to Kelvin Smith Library.

Schedule of Friday Lunch Upcoming Topics and Speakers:

February 12: Let's Talk About Lincoln. With Joseph White, Ph.D., Luxenberg Family Professor of Public Policy at Case Western Reserve University.

February 19: Criminal Justice Reform in Cuyahoga County. With Lewis R. Katz, John C. Hutchins, J.D., Professor of Law at Case Western Reserve University.

February 26: Update on the Presidential Campaign. With Justin Buchler, Associate Professor of Political Science at Case Western Reserve University. ***Alternate Location: Kelvin Smith Library, Room LL06***

March 4: Why Is There a Heroin Epidemic? With Lee Hoffer, Associate Professor of Anthropology at Case Western Reserve University.

March 11: Spring Break

March 18: E-Cigarettes: Problem or Solution? With Scott H. Frank MD MS, Associate Professor and Director, Master of Public Health Program, and Director of Health for the City of Shaker Heights.

March 25: Hosting the Super B**l of Politics. With Brittany Williams, Senior Project Manager, Cleveland 2016 Host Committee.

April 1: The Obama Administration and the Future of U.S. Manufacturing. With Susan Helper, Frank Tracy Carlton Professor of Economics and, former Chief Economist, U.S. Department of Commerce.

April 8: Citizenship in a Divided America. With Mary Romero, Professor of Justice Studies and Social Inquiry, Arizona State University. Cosponsored by Academic Careers in Engineering and Science (ACES) program. Room to be determined.

April 15: Money, Happiness, and Redistribution. With David Clingingsmith, Associate Professor of Economics. ***Alternate Location: Baker-Nord Center, Room 206, Clark Hall***

April 22: Germany, Asylum and the Future of Europe. With Kenneth F. Ledford, Associate Professor of History and Law and Chair, Department of History at Case Western Reserve University.
February 1, 2016

If you would like to reply, submit items for inclusion, or not receive this weekly e-mail please send a notice to: padg@case.edu

Upcoming Events

Challenges of the European Union in the 21ST Century

A discussion with Elliot Posner, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, Case Western Reserve University, Gillian Weiss, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of History, Case Western Reserve University. This discussion will be moderated by WCPN host/producer Tony Ganzer. Tuesday February 2, 2016, 7:00 p.m., Happy Dog, 5801 Detroit Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44102. Sponsored by the The City Club of Cleveland, the Cleveland Council on World Affairs, International Partners in Mission, and the Northeast Ohio Consortium for Middle Eastern Studies (NOCMES).

From its origins in the six-nation European Coal and Steel Community created in 1952, and Common Market created in 1957, the European Union has developed into a politico-economic partial union of 28 member-states with over 500 million citizens. Its development and growth have been associated with a period of unusual peace, stability, and prosperity for historically war-torn Europe.

Currently, the EU is facing historic challenges - Russia's resurgence, the sovereign debt crisis and the euro, the refugee crisis, aftermath of the attacks in France, terrorism and Schengen, and the possible exit of Britain from the EU. These challenges are significant as, over the decades, the EU has emerged as a powerful co-equal of the U.S. when it comes to regulating the global economy. Please join us for a discussion on how the EU can face its 21st century challenges.


Hungarian Foreign Policy – Renewed and Adjusted to Today’s Challenges

The Joseph and Violet Magyar Lecture in Hungarian Studies, a discussion with H.E. Dr. Réka Szemerkényi, the Ambassador of Hungary to the United States, Tuesday March 1, 2016, 5:00-6:00 p.m., Clark Hall-Room 309, 11130 Bellflower Road, Cleveland, OH 44106. Sponsored by the Baker-Nord Center for the Humanities at Case Western Reserve University. Free and open to the public. Registration recommended.

H.E. Dr. Réka Szemerkényi will discuss current developments in the foreign policy of her country in light of recent events that have unsettled Europe and the international community. In the last few years we have witnessed major changes and developments in international politics which have challenged the architecture of international system we have known since the 1990 system changes in Europe. On the one hand, Russia’s annexation of the Crimea has violated, and the crisis in Eastern Ukraine has tested, the frames of international law. On the other hand, the pillars and the very foundations of statehood have been questioned in the Middle East and North Africa. In the midst of these parallel challenges, the European Union has experienced two crises with a magnitude never known before.


February 2016

S

M

T

W

T

F

S

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

About the Friday Lunch Newsletter

If you would like to reply, submit items for inclusion, or not receive this weekly e-mail please send a notice to: padg@case.edu.

Visit the Public Affairs Discussion Group Web Site.

Center for Policy Studies | Mather House 111 | 11201 Euclid Avenue | Cleveland, Ohio 44106-7109 | 
Phone: 216.368.6730 | Part of the: College of Arts and Sciences
© 2016 Case Western Reserve University | Cleveland, Ohio 44106 | 216.368.2000 | legal notice