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The Rise and Fall of the Chinese Housing Market: Government Influence
By Anna Xing VI Form
The Rise and Fall of the Chinese Housing Market: Government Influence
Editor’s Note: This paper was completed as a part of the History Research Fellowship, a one-semester course available to sixth form students.
Student-Submitted Note: As the final product of my History Research Fellowship class, this paper examines the rise and fall of the Chinese housing market over the past 25 years and the government’s role in it. It first provides an overview of the birth of the market, then dives into the boom and bust of the market, and finally contrasts how foreign and Chinese state-owned medias report on the market.
“You have to enter a lottery to buy an apartment?” This was my reaction when my parents told me about how competitive the housing market was in my hometown of Hangzhou, China in 2020. This Chinese eagerness to invest in housing, however, did not appear overnight. Back on January 10, 2011, China Daily reported that “a man beaten into a coma during a fight between hopeful homebuyers and a developer in Hangzhou is rushed to the hospital.”
(more…)The 2008 Financial Crisis: Examining the Causes of Lehman Brothers Bankruptcy
By Roy (Jung-hun) Baeck, VI Form
The 2008 Financial Crisis: Examining the Causes of Lehman Brothers Bankruptcy
Editor’s Note: This paper was completed as a part of the History Research Fellowship, a one-semester course available to sixth form students.
Student-Submitted Note: As part of the History Research Fellowship, I conducted research on the history of financial and housing regulations up to the 2008 Financial Crisis and the impact it made to one of the Wall Street firms, Lehman Brothers, and more.
The following are headlines from The New York Times between September 10 and September 15, 2008.
A Battered Lehman Fights for Survival
Pressure grows on Lehman as shares slide again
Shares Continue Decline as Lehman Looks for Buyer
U.S. demands that Wall Street save Lehman
Lehman’s Fate Is in Doubt as Barclays Pulls Out of Talks
Lehman in Bankruptcy; Merrill to Be Sold; A.I.G. Struggles
On September 15, 2008, the Wall Street firm Lehman Brothers filed for the largest bankruptcy in the history of the United States. At a market value of nearly $46 billion at its peak, the firm’s glory ended with $613 billion of debt and over 25,000 unemployed people. To this day, historians consider the collapse of Lehman Brothers as the turning point of the 2008 financial crisis, causing turmoil in the already struggling United States and eventually worldwide.
The bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers, considered the centerpiece of the crumpled US financial market, illustrates the United States government’s poor effort to maintain a sustainable economy and a successful financial sector. A history of excessive emphasis on homeownership and unreasonably extensive housing policies resulted in the US housing market bubble. The bubble, integrated with the lack of regulations on financial derivatives and Wall Street’s substantial firms making reckless investments in the securities market, created the most impactful market crash of the 21st century.
(more…)Faith and Negligence: Christian Perceptions and Interactions with Chinese Immigrants in 19th Century America
By Steven Zhang, VI Form
Faith and Negligence: Christian Perceptions and Interactions with Chinese Immigrants in 19th Century America
Editor’s Note: This paper was completed as a part of the History Research Fellowship, a one-semester course available to sixth form students.
Introduction
On one night in 1887 in San Jose, California, fires clawed at the sky. Smoke billowed from collapsing roofs of Chinatown apartments and stores, and winds sent trees into frenzies. Amidst this chaos, mothers, their clothes coated in ash, hustled their coughing children to safety. The origin of the fire, which uprooted the lives of approximately 1,400 Chinese residents, remained shrouded in mystery. However, clues to this destruction emerged in a solitary photograph that captured the aftermath of the devastation. In it, hundreds of white working men stood watching the destruction of one of San Jose’s Chinatowns (Figure 1).
Figure 1: The Burning of San Jose’s Chinatown
While the facts of this case are still obscure, the San Jose City Council a hundred years later would unanimously vote a resolution to apologize to Chinese immigrants and their descendants for the role the city played in “systemic and institutional racism, xenophobia, and discrimination.” Today such a terrifying act might be widely condemned, but at the time it was merely one of many incidents of anti-Chinese violence that went relatively unnoticed. In fact, the burning of San Jose Chinatown in history is often eclipsed by similar, anti-Chinese acts, such as the more devastating Santa Ana Chinatown fire. These incidents, lost in a history of anti-Chinese violence, marked the peak of hostility in the late 1800s.
(more…)Second-Wave Feminism Through Music
By Maddie Bazinet, VI Form
Second-Wave Feminism Through Music
Editor’s Note: This paper was completed as a part of the History Research Fellowship, a one-semester course available to sixth form students.
Songs, artists, and the underlying implications of their music undoubtedly impact the everyday lives of individuals in contemporary society. Humanity consumes music to derive feelings from the lyrics and composition, and develop curiosity as to how and why the artists made the choices that they made. Moreover, musicians create their art to come to terms with their personal feelings and thoughts, and further expand their opinions on issues within themselves or greater society that remain pressing. One of these ongoing societal and cultural concerns, that also impacted and continues to influence American individuals at the emotional level, is the perception of women and their role in society. During and before twentieth-century America, stereotypes surrounding what it means to be a woman governed United States culture, and sustained an influence on how the media portrayed the female image. Today, the feminine image continues to be dynamic, and develop nuances of different lifestyle choices, giving women the opportunity to grow into their genuine personas. Despite perilous stereotypes of women as subjects to men, from specific political groups within contemporary American society, prominent figures in various industries and their diverse representations of typical femininity, empower the current generation of women. However, this inspiration originated in earlier versions of American society, which worked to create a concrete definition of feminism and transparency surrounding the steps for future gender equality. Similar to contemporary culture, popular figures during early feminist eras represented these values through their work, intending to empower women, and transmit a message that was consequential to them.
The beginning feminist movement in the United States surfaced between the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Primarily, the first wave of feminism focused on obtaining suffrage for women, especially as a competitive environment surrounding urbanization, industrialization, and the mobilization of politics began to emerge. At the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848, the first wave of feminism promoted significant change, as three hundred men and women gathered to rally for the cause of gender equality. The movement gave voice to now well-renowned figures of feminism like Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, and Sojourner Truth, who sought to examine the differences in perception between men and women, politically and socially.1 Overall, the first wave of feminism in the United States focused on providing women with equal opportunities to contribute politically, and thus, socially in America—specifically with the right to vote.2
(more…)Politics, Religion, and Gender Views during the Regime of Emperor Wu: Analysis of the interrelationships between Mahayana Buddhism, Emperor Wu, and Female Representations through the lens of art and literature
By: Helen Qing, VI Form
Politics, Religion, and Gender Views during the Regime of Emperor Wu: Analysis of the interrelationships between Mahayana Buddhism, Emperor Wu, and Female Representations through the lens of art and literature
Editor’s Note: This paper was completed as a part of the History Research Fellowship, a one-semester course available to sixth form students.
Student-Submitted Note: This research paper explores and analyzes the mutually beneficial relationship between the regime of Emperor Wu, the first and only female emperor of ancient Chinese history, and Mahayana Buddhism. The paper then explores the change in the representation of both secular and religious female figures in Buddhist arts and texts. The paper navigates through ancient Buddhist sutras, murals, sculptures, arts, and historic documents.
During the Tang Dynasty(618 AD ~ 907 AD), there was a woman named WuZhao (See Figures 1 and 2) who married her deceased husband’s son and became the one and only female sovereign in the long river of ancient Chinese history. In 637 AD, at the age of 14, because of her beauty and family background, Wu Zhao became a concubine of Emperor Taizong. In 649 AD, Taizong died, and along with other childless concubines, Wu Zhao shaved her hair and became a Buddhist nun in the GanYe Temple with other concubines. However, unlike most former concubines, her life had just begun.
One year after TaiZong’s death, his son, “Emperor Gao Zong, went to the temple to offer
incense and met Wu, and they wept together for Taizong. Gaozong was astonished by her beauty when they had first met in the Imperial court and since his father’s death paid regular visits to the temple in hopes of encountering the widow,” WuZhao. Gaozong had recently lost interest in Empress Wang, the queen, as she bore no children and turned attention to concubine Xiao who bore him three children. To distract the Emperor’s attention from concubine Xiao, Empress Wang encouraged Wu to cease shaving her hair and start to dress up every day. With the interest of the Emperor and support from Empress Wang, Wu Zhao was soon invited by the emperor to return to the palace after their encounter in the temple. Wu Zhao was given the title Zhaoyi, the highest- ranked concubine than the empress.
Operation El Dorado Canyon: A Defining Moment in American Foreign Policy
By Gannon Austin, VI Form
Operation El Dorado Canyon: A Defining Moment in American Foreign Policy
Editor’s Note: This paper was completed as a part of the History Research Fellowship, a one-semester course available to sixth form students.
Student-Submitted Note: This research paper was completed in my History Fellowship class where we had to pick a historical topic and conduct extensive research on it, which would culminate in a 25+ page paper. I chose Operation El Dorado Canyon because I’m interested in Muammar Gaddafi and I wanted to do an event that tied him and the United States together.
Introduction
Many Western countries now consider Libya a failed state and one of the most dangerous countries in the world. The CIA strongly recommends that U.S. citizens stay away from the country because of terrorism, civil unrest, crime, and kidnappings. Libya has been in a tailspin ever since the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi during the Arab Spring in 2011. Many Libyans thought it was an obvious choice to overthrow the government and give democracy a go, after over four decades of tyrannical rule by one of the world’s most brutal and unstable dictators. However, following Gaddafi’s death, warring militia groups have struggled for power and have completely destabilized the country and undermined any attempt to form a democracy.
Gaddafi ruled Libya with an iron fist for 42 years and is known to history as one of the world’s most brutal dictators. In 1969, then Colonel Gaddafi and other fellow officers overthrew the pro-Western monarch, King Idris I. They and most of Libya’s civilians felt that the King was selling out to Western oil companies, by giving them generous deals and not using any money for the Libyan people, most of whom lived in extreme poverty. The coup was bloodless and swift. Once in power, Gaddafi began an adversarial relationship with the West by nationalizing Libya’s oil industry. He heavily supported Arab forces in their conflicts with Israel in the 1970s and made the proclamation that Libya would be expanding its territorial water in the Gulf of Sidra. Libya also financed several terrorist groups and activities around the world, even though it denied any links to the attacks. The United States protested diplomatically but didn’t make any forceful moves against Libya.
(more…)Transpacific Scholars: A Journey Through the Boxer Indemnity
By: Daniel Guo, VI Form
Transpacific Scholars: A Journey Through the Boxer Indemnity
Editor’s Note: This paper was completed as part of a History Research Fellowship, a one-semester course available to sixth form students, where students write a historical research paper about their chosen topic.
Over the past two decades, the number of Chinese students in the United States has seen a remarkable surge, growing from a modest original number of around 20,000 students in 1991 to an enormous student body of more than 300,000 in 2021. Since 2009, Chinese students have consistently represented the highest portion of international students, making up nearly a third of all international students in American colleges and universities. These Chinese students choose to pursue a wide range of subjects and academic disciplines such as engineering, English, and law in the many different educational institutions that the United States offers, including prestigious universities such as Harvard and Yale. However, due to recent geopolitical tensions between China and the United States, the drive for Chinese students to study in the United States has diminished, with many turning to other prestigious schools in the United Kingdom and Europe instead.
This shift away from Chinese students in the United States is not just unique to the Chinese perspective: a Pew Research Center survey indicates that 55%, a majority of Americans surveyed, support limiting Chinese students studying in the United States. One in five Americans strongly supports limiting Chinese students in the United States. This situation is seemingly targeted specifically towards Chinese students, as the majority of Americans view international students favorably, with 80% of Americans expressing a positive opinion towards them.
(more…)Someone Has to Fail
By Brittney Brown, Mathematics and Science Faculty Member
Someone Has to Fail
Faculty-Submitted Note: This essay was to examine how St. Mark’s fits in with the trifecta of aims (social mobility, social efficiency, and democratic equality) that David Labaree described in his book “Someone Has to Fail”.
St. Mark’s, an elite private boarding school that proudly believes in their slogan “Intentionally Small, THINKING BIG,” claims to help students “develop a spirit of independence, innovation, and discovery” that prepares “them to lead lives of consequences” (St. Mark’s School, n.d.). For a school that was initially focused on the idea of social mobility, the expansion to include themes of democratic equality and social efficiency have not been implemented in the most beneficial way. When reading Labree’s Someone Has to Fail, the quote “the American system of education is highly accessible, radically unequal, organizationally fragmented, and instructionally mediocre” reminded me of St. Mark’s (Labaree, 2010). By attempting to encompass all the values of democratic equality, social mobility, and social efficiency, St. Mark’s appears to be subpar at all three.
One of St. Mark’s biggest selling points is centered around the idea of community. Creating a community that allows for a range of different perspectives also ties into the goal of students “living lives of consequence,” or gaining the skills necessary to participate in communities outside of St. Mark’s. Democratic equality, defined by Labree, “sees education as a mechanism for producing capable citizens” (Labaree, 2010). With a focus on community and being open to different perspectives is key to St. Mark’s approach to democratic equality. There is ample opportunity for students to gather together given that we meet as a whole school every school day. We give opportunities for students to participate in global studies with the goal that they become global citizens or gain a global perspective. There are community and student centered gatherings, such as Gray Colloquium (a speaker series with a discussion theme each year), or Community and Equity student meetings (where different topics are discussed), that give students the opportunity to participate. These are opportunities, not requirements, so every student is embodying a different interpretation of what it means to be a capable citizen. Without these requirements, how effective is the claim that students will gain a global mindset?
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