This is part of Jesse Rodenbiker's class, "Global Awareness: Introduction to Global and International Studies." It is co-sponsored by Global Asias Initiative and Rutgers Global. Everybody is welcome. Please send a note to Professor Rodenbiker if you are coming.
Abstract
This talk expands the study of state-society relations into the global arena by examining how migrant-sending states, particularly China, engage with their diasporas. Drawing on Migdal’s “state-in-society” theory, it introduces the concept of transborder symbiosis to illustrate the dynamic, interdependent relationships between grassroots actors, such as local officials and diaspora leaders. While existing research on diaspora politics focuses primarily on state-led transnational repression or the instrumental use of diasporas for economic and political purposes, this talk shifts attention to everyday symbolic interactions between these actors. Based on five years of ethnographic fieldwork in China and Europe, I argue that Chinese diaspora politics is shaped less by assertive national policies than by grassroots actors’ pragmatic efforts to navigate structural constraints and advance their own interests. Diaspora leaders and local officials create a symbolic façade of compliance with China’s geopolitical strategies, yet these performative actions can trigger unintended consequences, including controversies over alleged “secret police stations.” By introducing a sociological lens to geopolitics, this talk highlights the grassroots mechanisms behind Global China’s influence and challenges monolithic portrayals of its overseas power. These findings provide a nuanced framework for understanding state-diaspora relations, relevant also to other emerging powers like India and Turkey.
Bio
Jiaqi Liu is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at Singapore Management University and a Postdoctoral Research Associate at Princeton University. His research lies at the intersection of political sociology, international migration, law, human rights, and digital technologies. In an ongoing book project, “The Homeland's Long Arm: Diaspora Politics and the Limits of Global China,” Liu examines the complex dynamics between Chinese diasporas and an increasingly ambitious homeland state in the context of China’s global rise. His work has been recognized with five Best Article Awards from the American Sociological Association sections on International Migration (twice), Political Sociology, Human Rights, and Political Economy of the World-System. Liu holds a PhD from the University of California San Diego, a JD from the University of Arizona, and a Master of International Affairs degree from Sciences Po Paris.
