Unsettling Exiles: Chinese Migrants in Hong Kong and the Southern Periphery During the Cold War

The conventional story of Hong Kong celebrates the people who fled the mainland in the wake of the establishment of the Peoples Republic of China in 1949. Unsettling Exiles recasts identity formation in Hong Kong, demonstrating that the complexities of crossing borders shaped the city's uneasy place in the Sinophone world. Angelina Y. Chin foregrounds the experiences of the many people who passed through Hong Kong without settling down or finding a sense of belonging, including refugees, deportees, "undesirable" residents, and members of sea communities. Chin develops the concept of the "Southern Periphery"—the region along the southern frontier of the PRC, outside its administrative control yet closely tied to its political space. Both the PRC and governments in the Southern Periphery implemented strict migration and deportation policies in pursuit of border control, with profound consequences for people in transit. Chin argues that Hong Kong identity emerged from the collective trauma of exile and dislocation, as well as a sense of being on the margins of both the Communist and Nationalist Chinese regimes during the Cold War.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 320 pages
Publication date: 25 April 2023
Publisher: Columbia University Press

The conventional story of Hong Kong celebrates the people who fled the mainland in the wake of the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949. In this telling, migrants thrived under British colonial rule, transforming Hong Kong into a cosmopolitan city and an industrial and financial hub.

Unsettling Exiles: Reimagining Identity Formation in Hong Kong, by Angelina Y. Chin, offers a fresh perspective on identity formation in Hong Kong, challenging the notion that it was solely shaped by the influx of migrants from the mainland after the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949. Chin demonstrates that the complexities of crossing borders shaped the city's uneasy place in the Sinophone world.

One of the key themes of the book is the experiences of the many people who passed through Hong Kong without settling down or finding a sense of belonging. Chin highlights the stories of refugees, deportees, "undesirable" residents, and members of sea communities who traversed Hong Kong's borders. She emphasizes that flows of people did not stop at Hong Kong's borders but also bled into neighboring territories such as Taiwan and Macau.

Chin develops the concept of the "Southern Periphery," the region along the southern frontier of the People's Republic of China, outside its administrative control yet closely tied to its political space. Both the People's Republic of China and governments in the Southern Periphery implemented strict migration and deportation policies in pursuit of border control, with profound consequences for people in transit. Chin argues that Hong Kong identity emerged from the collective trauma of exile and dislocation, as well as a sense of being on the margins of both the Communist and Nationalist Chinese regimes during the Cold War.

Drawing on wide-ranging research, Unsettling Exiles sheds new light on Hong Kong's ambivalent relationship to the mainland, its role in the global Cold War, and the origins of today's political currents. Chin's book is a valuable contribution to the study of Hong Kong and China's history, and it will be of interest to scholars, researchers, and anyone with an interest in the region's complex history and current political dynamics.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780231209991