David Porter
@dcporter.bsky.social
Qing historian, résidant à Montréal
When I first met substantial numbers of Minnesotans as a university student, I was struck and annoyed by their obsessive (and loud) devotion to their state and total confidence in the superiority of Minnesota and its people. So it pains me to now have to admit that it seems they may have been right.
January 27, 2026 at 1:27 AM
When I first met substantial numbers of Minnesotans as a university student, I was struck and annoyed by their obsessive (and loud) devotion to their state and total confidence in the superiority of Minnesota and its people. So it pains me to now have to admit that it seems they may have been right.
Reposted by David Porter
It's been slowly happening for a few years now but China's official multiculturalism is functionally dead, living on only on banknotes and some shells of ethnic state offices dominated and now mostly staffed by Han madeinchinajournal.com/2026/01/20/r...
Rectifying Names, Erasing Mongols: The Unmaking of Mongolian Education in China
On a clear October morning in 2025, two massive cranes rolled up to a middle school in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Workers prised off the large Chinese and Mongolian signs running along the ...
madeinchinajournal.com
January 25, 2026 at 6:17 PM
It's been slowly happening for a few years now but China's official multiculturalism is functionally dead, living on only on banknotes and some shells of ethnic state offices dominated and now mostly staffed by Han madeinchinajournal.com/2026/01/20/r...
Reposted by David Porter
what I didn't have space for here was 'Trump-supporting China hawks have brought an entirely predictable disaster on themselves, the absolute fucking fools'
January 21, 2026 at 1:40 AM
what I didn't have space for here was 'Trump-supporting China hawks have brought an entirely predictable disaster on themselves, the absolute fucking fools'
Really enjoyed Peng Hai's article "Re-marking Xinjiang" in November's JAS. He looks at changing representations in film of the PRC incorporation of Xinjiang, showing how narratives of Uyghur participation in their own liberation turned to glorification of a national project
Re-marking Xinjiang: From Liberation to Westward Expedition
Abstract. This article examines three films made by the Urumqi-based Tianshan Film Studio spanning four decades, from the 1960s to the 1990s. These films encapsulate the discursive shifts surrounding ...
read.dukeupress.edu
January 20, 2026 at 4:43 PM
Really enjoyed Peng Hai's article "Re-marking Xinjiang" in November's JAS. He looks at changing representations in film of the PRC incorporation of Xinjiang, showing how narratives of Uyghur participation in their own liberation turned to glorification of a national project
After reading this article, had a conversation with my wife about the point at which we should renounce US citizenship. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/05/u...
Stephen Miller Asserts U.S. Has Right to Take Greenland
www.nytimes.com
January 6, 2026 at 1:51 PM
After reading this article, had a conversation with my wife about the point at which we should renounce US citizenship. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/05/u...
A few observations, from narrower to more general:
1. I think the point later in the quoted thread about keju not being the dominant mechanism for ensuring the capability of officials is reinforced by the fact that keju were not the (exclusive) path into office for the majority of Qing officials.
1. I think the point later in the quoted thread about keju not being the dominant mechanism for ensuring the capability of officials is reinforced by the fact that keju were not the (exclusive) path into office for the majority of Qing officials.
Great essay by @durlauf.bsky.social on the difficulty of assessing what is 'meritocratic' which crystallizes a lot of the discomfort I have had with discussions of the keju and gaokao as 'meritocratic' without really talking about what that really means. papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.... 1/5
Meritocracy and Its Discontents
<p>In this essay, I outline some ways to think about meritocracy. I interpret <span>meritocracy as a constellation of claims about who deserves certain thi
papers.ssrn.com
December 27, 2025 at 5:09 AM
A few observations, from narrower to more general:
1. I think the point later in the quoted thread about keju not being the dominant mechanism for ensuring the capability of officials is reinforced by the fact that keju were not the (exclusive) path into office for the majority of Qing officials.
1. I think the point later in the quoted thread about keju not being the dominant mechanism for ensuring the capability of officials is reinforced by the fact that keju were not the (exclusive) path into office for the majority of Qing officials.
Profoundly annoying book. As a Qing historian, I also hate the very premise: that a world in which magical power flows from silver and translation is one in which the Qing would be getting crushed by Britain. Silver and translation were basically the Qing empire's whole deal.
Has anyone read the book Babel? I’m trying but every time I start to get into it it gets really didactic in a way that just rips me right back out of it
December 26, 2025 at 12:13 PM
Profoundly annoying book. As a Qing historian, I also hate the very premise: that a world in which magical power flows from silver and translation is one in which the Qing would be getting crushed by Britain. Silver and translation were basically the Qing empire's whole deal.
Reposted by David Porter
"We welcome PhDs to a round table table discussion from assistant professors who were recently on the job market"
December 16, 2025 at 9:28 AM
"We welcome PhDs to a round table table discussion from assistant professors who were recently on the job market"
Just became aware of this case and it really hits close to home: hrichina.substack.com/p/young-chin...
December 13, 2025 at 7:37 PM
Just became aware of this case and it really hits close to home: hrichina.substack.com/p/young-chin...
Reposted by David Porter
In late 2020 a Chinese man called Guan Heng travelled to Xinjiang with our BuzzFeed map of detention facilities to provide ground truth for our work - he provided the first corroborating evidence for many sites.
He escaped to the US - then ICE detained him.
www.wsj.com/world/china/...
He escaped to the US - then ICE detained him.
www.wsj.com/world/china/...
ICE Holding Chinese Man Who Documented Uyghur Camps
Heng Guan is awaiting an immigration hearing on Monday that could lead to his removal from the U.S. and ultimately land him back in China, according to his lawyer and a New York-based activist group.
www.wsj.com
December 13, 2025 at 3:17 PM
In late 2020 a Chinese man called Guan Heng travelled to Xinjiang with our BuzzFeed map of detention facilities to provide ground truth for our work - he provided the first corroborating evidence for many sites.
He escaped to the US - then ICE detained him.
www.wsj.com/world/china/...
He escaped to the US - then ICE detained him.
www.wsj.com/world/china/...
Reposted by David Porter
There’s a dissertation that gets cited all the time in my field that would have been a *book* that gets cited all the time, if there had been any opportunity for the author to stay in the trade. At this point we can all think of work that might have been career-making, so many firsts that were final
I wrote this a few years ago now, but it's still very relevant sadly. Constant redundancy has been the norm for many of us since we began our careers. Sorry for everyone who is now facing it unexpectedly. Logging off for a bit. #UKHE #UCU
hagenilda.wordpress.com/2022/01/31/a...
hagenilda.wordpress.com/2022/01/31/a...
Academic precarity harms us all
I’ve been working on this for a while. It sums up my experience of and thoughts about academic precarity. Tl;dr it harms us all: staff, institutions and, most importantly, students. I am writ…
hagenilda.wordpress.com
December 12, 2025 at 3:01 PM
There’s a dissertation that gets cited all the time in my field that would have been a *book* that gets cited all the time, if there had been any opportunity for the author to stay in the trade. At this point we can all think of work that might have been career-making, so many firsts that were final
The final exam question I most enjoyed writing: Amusingly, of those who answered it wrong, Churchill's grandfather looting the Tiantan was a far more popular option than Nelson's grandson looting the Bishu shanzhuang or Conan Doyle's father looting the Yonghegong
December 12, 2025 at 2:57 AM
The final exam question I most enjoyed writing: Amusingly, of those who answered it wrong, Churchill's grandfather looting the Tiantan was a far more popular option than Nelson's grandson looting the Bishu shanzhuang or Conan Doyle's father looting the Yonghegong
Or we can just embrace the French approach, in which all academic fields are sciences (speaking as a practitioner of the sciences humaines).
December 10, 2025 at 7:22 PM
Or we can just embrace the French approach, in which all academic fields are sciences (speaking as a practitioner of the sciences humaines).
Reposted by David Porter
Many Chinese people came—or hope to come—to the US for its freedoms and because it is is a gentler, more humane society where the government respects human rights, unlike in China. The Trump administration is doing the CCP’s best propaganda to ruin America’s reputation.
Last week, ICE arrested and separated a father and son after a routine check-in. Six-year-old Yuanxin had just enrolled in the first grade at an elementary school in Astoria. Now he's in custody, alone. ICE won't say where. This cruelty serves no one. It must end.
December 3, 2025 at 1:14 AM
Many Chinese people came—or hope to come—to the US for its freedoms and because it is is a gentler, more humane society where the government respects human rights, unlike in China. The Trump administration is doing the CCP’s best propaganda to ruin America’s reputation.
The weekly 驻京办 dinner club that a few friends and I founded 10 years ago is still going strong and eating well, as nicely reflected in this piece by a current participant www.eastside.asia/articles/the...
The Beijing government offices where you can eat your way across China — Beijing, China ✦ eastside.asia
The first thing I did once I landed in Beijing after a year of living away was to hop into a taxi with some urgency.
www.eastside.asia
December 2, 2025 at 10:51 PM
The weekly 驻京办 dinner club that a few friends and I founded 10 years ago is still going strong and eating well, as nicely reflected in this piece by a current participant www.eastside.asia/articles/the...
Reposted by David Porter
Apparently every Chinese academic in any field of “interest” to the PLA is getting their visa rejected for, more or less, presumptively being a spy. My friend’s visa is denied because she studies “neuroscience.” What she actually studies is jaw pain - but ICE is flatly rejecting all appeals.
Just got the word that the Trump administration is throwing a brilliant medical researcher friend of mine out of the country because they’re Chinese. Insane and unreal. Literally doing research in the US to help the US
December 2, 2025 at 9:30 PM
Apparently every Chinese academic in any field of “interest” to the PLA is getting their visa rejected for, more or less, presumptively being a spy. My friend’s visa is denied because she studies “neuroscience.” What she actually studies is jaw pain - but ICE is flatly rejecting all appeals.
Important to understand the basic principles of Chinese history: when determining whether territories like Tibet, Xinjiang, etc. are historically integral part of China, it's essential to treat dynasties ruled by Inner Asians (like Yuan and Qing) as Chinese.
Sachs is not interested in historical accuracy or insight. He is simply shilling for Xi.
November 28, 2025 at 5:36 PM
Important to understand the basic principles of Chinese history: when determining whether territories like Tibet, Xinjiang, etc. are historically integral part of China, it's essential to treat dynasties ruled by Inner Asians (like Yuan and Qing) as Chinese.
Really should have stopped assigning To Live (movie version) in classes after becoming a father - now basically the whole second half of the film turns me into a sobbing mess
November 26, 2025 at 3:39 AM
Really should have stopped assigning To Live (movie version) in classes after becoming a father - now basically the whole second half of the film turns me into a sobbing mess
Reposted by David Porter
Personnel Management and Political Reform in Early Nineteenth-Century China - myself, Amy Gordanier, and Hou Yueran presenting, with David Porter @dcporter.bsky.social offering comments. 10:30 am on Saturday 3/14.
The #AAS2026 preliminary conference program is online ... start browsing the nearly *600 sessions*, planning your schedule, and seeing all that our gathering in Vancouver has to offer!
buff.ly/gItXtM1
buff.ly/gItXtM1
November 24, 2025 at 4:00 PM
Personnel Management and Political Reform in Early Nineteenth-Century China - myself, Amy Gordanier, and Hou Yueran presenting, with David Porter @dcporter.bsky.social offering comments. 10:30 am on Saturday 3/14.
Reposted by David Porter
In case you missed it, Kerry Brown wrote a book that plagiarized Shelley Rigger’s classic book title.
I, along with others who were asked to review Kerry’s manuscript, said verbatim to change the title.
In the most tacky and unprofessional fashion, he stole her title anyway.
I, along with others who were asked to review Kerry’s manuscript, said verbatim to change the title.
In the most tacky and unprofessional fashion, he stole her title anyway.
November 5, 2025 at 1:44 PM
In case you missed it, Kerry Brown wrote a book that plagiarized Shelley Rigger’s classic book title.
I, along with others who were asked to review Kerry’s manuscript, said verbatim to change the title.
In the most tacky and unprofessional fashion, he stole her title anyway.
I, along with others who were asked to review Kerry’s manuscript, said verbatim to change the title.
In the most tacky and unprofessional fashion, he stole her title anyway.
I have to now be uncharacteristically sincere and say that I was actually very impressed by the Canadian citizenship ceremony, especially the genuine effort to incorporate indigenous perspectives/traditions and that I am very pleased to now be a Canadian
Those who knew me at a certain earlier stage of my life will be pretty amused to learn that this afternoon I will be voluntarily swearing an oath of allegiance to a monarch (and specifically to a king named Charles).
October 31, 2025 at 8:48 PM
I have to now be uncharacteristically sincere and say that I was actually very impressed by the Canadian citizenship ceremony, especially the genuine effort to incorporate indigenous perspectives/traditions and that I am very pleased to now be a Canadian
Those who knew me at a certain earlier stage of my life will be pretty amused to learn that this afternoon I will be voluntarily swearing an oath of allegiance to a monarch (and specifically to a king named Charles).
October 31, 2025 at 1:33 PM
Those who knew me at a certain earlier stage of my life will be pretty amused to learn that this afternoon I will be voluntarily swearing an oath of allegiance to a monarch (and specifically to a king named Charles).
Reposted by David Porter
An LLM-produced essay is tangible proof that a student doesn’t care, and yet responding to it properly requires hour upon hour of careful work. It’s asymmetrical and overwhelming.
October 28, 2025 at 12:57 PM
An LLM-produced essay is tangible proof that a student doesn’t care, and yet responding to it properly requires hour upon hour of careful work. It’s asymmetrical and overwhelming.
Chaos is when your partner reshelves a Wade Giles-romanized Lu Xun translation under H
October 24, 2025 at 12:05 PM
Chaos is when your partner reshelves a Wade Giles-romanized Lu Xun translation under H
Incidentally, many of these are terrific places to eat regional cuisine (the lobbies, which are linked to hotels/restaurants, not the detention systems).
one notable thing is that every province, for instance, has what's essentially a large lobby in Beijing. those are somewhat shrunk since their heyday but still function. they also used to run entire systems of detention aimed at preventing locals from petitioning the central govt.
October 19, 2025 at 7:07 PM
Incidentally, many of these are terrific places to eat regional cuisine (the lobbies, which are linked to hotels/restaurants, not the detention systems).