How can the poor and weak 'work' a political system to their advantage? Drawing mainly on interviews and surveys in rural China, Kevin O'Brien and Lianjiang Li show that popular action often hinges on locating and exploiting divisions within the state. Otherwise powerless people use the rhetoric and commitments of the central government to try to fight misconduct by local officials, open up clogged channels of participation, and push back the frontiers of the permissible. This 'rightful resistance' has far-reaching implications for our understanding of contentious politics. As O'Brien and Li explore the origins, dynamics, and consequences of rightful resistance, they highlight similarities between collective action in places as varied as China, the former East Germany, and the United States, while suggesting how Chinese experiences speak to issues such as opportunities to protest, claims radicalization, tactical innovation, and the outcomes of contention.

This book introduces the concept of rightful resistance and explains how it operates in rural China.

About the Author
Kevin J. O'Brien is Bedford Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley. His research focuses on popular protest and Chinese politics in the reform era. He is the author of Reform without Liberalization: China's National People's Congress and the Politics of Institutional Change, and the co-editor of Engaging the Law in China: State, Society, and Possibilities for Justice. Currently, he is serving as the Chair of the Center of Chinese Studies at UC-Berkeley. Lianjiang Li is an Associate Professor in the Department of Government and International Studies at Hong Kong Baptist University. His research focuses on village elections and collective action in rural China. He has published in Asian Survey, China Information, China Journal, China Quarterly, Comparative Politics, Comparative Political Studies, the Journal of Contemporary China, and Modern China.

Reviews
'This book can be highly recommended as a major contribution to political science that sheds new light on the relations between state and society in China and raises key questions regarding the evolution and mode of functioning of the regime.' China Perspectives
'The topic of this succinct and readable book is an important one ... Organized like an episode of collective action, the book works its way from origins to dynamics to consequences. These supply neat and useful conceptual frames not only for this particular book but also for the study of Chinese popular contention.' Journal of Chinese Political Science
'... clearly-written and a highly engaging read' Political Studies Review
'This book is a major contribution to the growing literature on political development in China. It is focused and clearly written, and readers can easily follow where the engaging empirical examples fit into the literature and theoretical framework. I highly recommend it to scholars and students (graduates and undergraduates) who are interested in social movement theory and political protest in China, and its findings should appeal to many others both within and beyond the China field.' Journal of Asian Studies
'This book stands out from the others in this subfield. ... O'Brien and Li's theoretical pursuit is anchored to solid empirical investigations ... the book is thorough and informative ... [it is] remarkable in many ways. It is small and accessible, but also rich and sophisticated. ... a must-read for anyone who is interested in understanding state-society relations and political change in China.' The China Journal



Book Information
ISBN 9780521678520
Author Kevin J. O'Brien
Format Paperback
Page Count 200
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 300g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 152mm * 12mm