As part of his world tour, NBA superstar LeBron James, or the “Small Emperor” (小皇帝) as he is known in Chinese, came to the cities of Beijing, Shenyang, and Shanghai to meet fans, to perform basketball clinics, and promote his shoe line.
Ironically, in the US, suburbs tend to be prosperous, while the inner cities tend to be less so, while in China it is largely the reverse. However, LeBron was correct in seeing some broad similarities in the plight of African-Americans and the plight of the children of migrant workers. Much like the Chinese urban vs. rural hukou divide, in America, the middle class wealth of the suburbs and the relative poverty of the inner cities (which are disproportionately inhabited by blacks and other minorities), is largely the consequence of government policy. After World War II, with major investment in roads and highways – epitomized by the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 – it became possible to build new housing developments outside of cities, while enabling people to drive to their jobs located downtown. At the same time, many returning soldiers and working class white people found that they could up grade their status by moving to nice homes in these newly developing suburbs, thanks to efforts of the New Deal such as the loans from the Federal Housing Administration and through the G.I. Bill. However, recent research has shown that black people, including black soldiers, did not benefit nearly as much from these federal policies as white people. Indeed, the “white flight” to the suburbs often led to substantial drops in housing prices in inner cities and left black people to be the primary inhabitants of these areas.
Similarly, in China, in the state planning era, the government set mandatory procurement policies (of grains and other foodstuffs) on farmers, and then the government subsequently either sold the crops at a higher than market price, or sold it for export. Much of the profit (or implicit tax) was used to boost urban manufacturing and develop China’s cities. Then, in the Reform Era, China largely adopted an economic model that utilized its great comparative advantage of cheap labour to make goods destined for the export sector. Most of this “cheap labour” were people from rural areas, who had little access to social services, especially in the cities.
The above is admittedly an overly simplified version of events, and the central government has taken some measures to improve things, but as CLB’s report “the Children of Migrant Workers in China” makes clear, children of migrant workers still face many barriers to advancement compared to their urban counterparts, especially in education.
Hopefully, LeBron’s visit with the children of migrant workers will inspire them to achieve their dreams and will place more focus on their welfare. Let’s just hope members of the State Council are basketball fans!
(Photo courtesy of Keith Allison)
In Beijing, LeBron met with some students who are the children of migrant workers. According to the China Daily:He told them of his experiences and donated basketballs and scholarships, with the support of his sponsor, Nike.
"You look at those migrant kids. They feel like their dreams are washing away. We want to help them to regain the belief that they can achieve anything they want to. That's the inspiration we have behind all of these things," said James.
"Hopefully these kids can understand that they cannot only have a dream but also make it reality."
James was brought up by his mother and became an NBA superstar through dint of hard work. He now wants to encourage children in similar situations.
"Hopefully, I can empower kids and make them understand that there is more than one way out, no matter where they grow up, in the cities or in the suburbs," he said.
Ironically, in the US, suburbs tend to be prosperous, while the inner cities tend to be less so, while in China it is largely the reverse. However, LeBron was correct in seeing some broad similarities in the plight of African-Americans and the plight of the children of migrant workers. Much like the Chinese urban vs. rural hukou divide, in America, the middle class wealth of the suburbs and the relative poverty of the inner cities (which are disproportionately inhabited by blacks and other minorities), is largely the consequence of government policy. After World War II, with major investment in roads and highways – epitomized by the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 – it became possible to build new housing developments outside of cities, while enabling people to drive to their jobs located downtown. At the same time, many returning soldiers and working class white people found that they could up grade their status by moving to nice homes in these newly developing suburbs, thanks to efforts of the New Deal such as the loans from the Federal Housing Administration and through the G.I. Bill. However, recent research has shown that black people, including black soldiers, did not benefit nearly as much from these federal policies as white people. Indeed, the “white flight” to the suburbs often led to substantial drops in housing prices in inner cities and left black people to be the primary inhabitants of these areas.
Similarly, in China, in the state planning era, the government set mandatory procurement policies (of grains and other foodstuffs) on farmers, and then the government subsequently either sold the crops at a higher than market price, or sold it for export. Much of the profit (or implicit tax) was used to boost urban manufacturing and develop China’s cities. Then, in the Reform Era, China largely adopted an economic model that utilized its great comparative advantage of cheap labour to make goods destined for the export sector. Most of this “cheap labour” were people from rural areas, who had little access to social services, especially in the cities.
The above is admittedly an overly simplified version of events, and the central government has taken some measures to improve things, but as CLB’s report “the Children of Migrant Workers in China” makes clear, children of migrant workers still face many barriers to advancement compared to their urban counterparts, especially in education.
Hopefully, LeBron’s visit with the children of migrant workers will inspire them to achieve their dreams and will place more focus on their welfare. Let’s just hope members of the State Council are basketball fans!
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