Drawing on her reporting for the New York Times “China Rules” series, Amy will take us beyond the headlines to understand how politics, culture, and society meet in today’s China. We are often presented with a monolithic view of China, one that focuses primarily on the Communist Party of China (CCP) and its omnipresent influence and tightening grip over Chinese society. Yet these stories often fail to adequately capture the complexities and contractions of daily life. From a female sexual education teacher to a Tibetan filmmaker, and even rappers in Chengdu — Amy will discuss how 70 years of CCP rule have reshaped life and decision-making for average Chinese citizens. How are Chinese citizens creating autonomy and opportunity within a landscape of deepening political control? What should Western observers understand about the profound contradictions in the relationship between society and the state?

This is the eighth session of the Asia Society Policy Institute's AsiaX  speaker series and networking event for Asia policy professionals and young executives.  AsiaX is focused on bringing fresh ideas from up-and-coming Asian innovators and experts to the Washington D.C. policy debate. These private events bring together young leaders from across the government, business, and policy communities to discuss emerging trends and issues that are re-shaping Asia and the U.S. role in the region.

Speakers

Amy Qin  is a China correspondent for The New York Times in Beijing. Her work covers the intersection of culture, politics, and society, and has addressed topics ranging from the growth of China's soft power, Chinese dissident artists, and even a mysterious North Korean-backed museum in Cambodia. More recently, Amy was a key contributor to the New York Times’ “China Rules” series and has published important pieces exploring Hong Kong's political protests, the live U.S.-China trade debates between CCTV and Fox News anchors, and how U.S.-China tensions are reshaping Chinese public opinion about the United States. Fluent in Mandarin, Ms. Qin is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley and Oxford University. She grew up in Northern California and spent childhood summers at her family’s ancestral homes in two of China’s spiciest provinces, Shaanxi and Sichuan.

Lindsey W. Ford is the Director of Political-Security Affairs for the Asia Society Policy Institute, as well as ASPI’s inaugural Richard Holbrooke Fellow and Deputy Director of the Washington D.C. Office. Prior to joining ASPI, she served in a variety of roles at the U.S. Department of Defense, including, most recently, as the Senior Adviser to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs. Ford has previously worked as a researcher for the Center for a New American Security, and as a consultant to organizations including the United Nations Development Fund for Women and the Congressional Research Service.