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A Convenient Misremembrance: Hong Kong’s Colonial Legacy
By Mandy Hui
A Convenient Misremembrance: Hong Kong’s Colonial Legacy
Editor’s Note: This paper was completed as a part of the History Research Fellowship, a one-semester course available to sixth form students.
Is Hong Kong a part of China? The answer to that question depends upon whom you ask.
In 1842, Britain occupied the small island of Hong Kong. The colonial empire maintained political control for a century and a half, eventually returning the city to the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 1997. During the transfer of power, the PRC declared Hong Kong a special administrative region. This unique status permitted the city to operate separate legal and economic systems from those in mainland China, a principle embodied in the slogan “one country, two systems.” The Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping developed this idea during the 1980s in anticipation of Hong Kong’s reunification with China. The concept not only preserved Hong Kong’s capitalist system, it also granted the city a high-degree of autonomy until 2047. The agreement promised Hong Kong residents freedoms of speech, press, and assembly, all of which are not guaranteed in the mainland.
In recent years, many Hong Kong residents have prided themselves on their city’s civil liberties, in distinction from the more strict rule on the mainland. However, China began gradually limiting Hong Kong’s freedoms in many different ways, such as abducting Hong Kongers who sold books criticizing the PRC in the early 2010s. China’s repeated threats to strip Hong Kong of its autonomy have been met with mass demonstrations; thousands of pro-democracy residents rallied in the streets of Hong Kong, protesting the PRC’s infringement on the “one country, two systems” policy it had promised to retain for 50 years.
Growing up in Hong Kong, I witnessed protestors block familiar roads and businesses to force China’s authoritarian government to concede in its attempts to end Hong Kong’s democratic system. I have seen thousands symbolically use umbrellas and black clothing as a cry for freedom and democracy. For most of my life, my friends and I were too young to formulate our own informed opinions regarding these protests, but the events of 2019 and 2020 changed my perspective on what was unfolding before me.
In the midst of the 2019 protests, I had a conversation over lunch with one of my close friends about Hong Kong’s political crisis. I was conscious of my friend’s impassioned beliefs on the matter. Due to the topic’s sensitive nature, we decided to eat at a “yellow restaurant,” a title given to restaurants owned by pro-democracy supporters. I asked her about her thoughts. She described tension among her family members about China’s restrictions. She wanted to take part in the pro-democracy protests, however, her parents threatened to disown her if she associated herself with the demonstrators. At the end of her soliloquy, she let out a sigh and muttered, “I wish Hong Kong was a British colony again.”
This wasn’t the first time I’d heard pro-democracy supporters reminisce about the city’s colonial era. The week before, thousands of demonstrators gathered to sing the British national anthem, “God Save the Queen,” and hundreds waved Union Jacks as a sign of resistance against the PRC. I was confused. Why do many Hong Kong citizens look favorably on British colonial rule but bravely resist PRC’s control? How can the British Union Jack, the flag of Hong Kong’s former colonizer, be used as a symbol of democracy?
(more…)Landmark Redistricting Cases in the Supreme Court and their Influence on U.S. Electoral Equality
By Steven Yang
Landmark Redistricting Cases in the Supreme Court and their Influence on U.S. Electoral Equality
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 paper was completed as part of the VI Form History Fellowship class, and focuses on the history of the Supreme Court’s involvement in redistricting, the process by which areas are broken up into political districts for each representative to serve. It starts with a summary of the parts of the Constitution pertinent to understand the topic, then chronologically understands the history of redistricting in the context of Supreme Court cases.
The Constitution of the United States begins with “We the People,” a famous phrase expressing the democratic principles of equality and power derived from the people; yet, there lies a dissonance between these principles and contemporary American politics, particularly within elections. Electoral laws can greatly influence results; controversial practices like strict voter ID laws and eliminating the ability to vote early or use mail-in ballots can lower voter turnout and heavily sway elections. One of the most egregious examples of these democratic principles, however, is called gerrymandering. Because state legislatures are tasked by the Constitution to draw districts elected officials represent, politicians can “entrench” themselves in office by drawing maps favorable to them. The process of drawing these districts on a decennial basis is known as redistricting, and redistricting that is aimed to benefit a certain group of people is called gerrymandering. While the most common form of modern gerrymandering is partisan gerrymandering, where politicians draw maps to benefit their party, other types of gerrymandering like racial gerrymandering have occurred in the past.3 At its worst, gerrymandering can be the equivalent of rigging elections. An antithesis to the core democratic principles the United States was built upon, gerrymandering is a flagrant violation of democracy so widespread that it has become synonymous with American life.
Legal challenges to unfair redistricting began in the 1940s, and redistricting has been a routine issue for the court to address up to the modern day. Many cases escalated to the Supreme Court, whose rulings on redistricting can have momentous effects. Early cases through the 1960s largely focused on malapportionment, a form of unfair redistricting where some voter’s voices are diluted because they live in political districts that were much larger in population than others. The court was generally willing to impose more requirements of redistricted maps to ensure equality, like mandating political districts must be roughly the same population. The 1980s to 2000s saw the court rule on other types of unfair redistricting, notably racial and partisan gerrymandering. However, when encountering questions of partisan gerrymandering, partisan bias of the court became increasingly evident. Combined with increased political polarization, the makeup of the consistently conservative courts during at the turn of the 21st century quickly became overwhelmingly partisan, favoring the Republicans who appointed justices in their roles. This represented a drastic departure from precedent and from democratic values as a whole. The court’s decisions are monumental, and by essentially deregulating partisan gerrymandering in recent cases, gerrymandering has become even more widespread than before.
This paper explores the history of redistricting and gerrymandering chronologically, starting with clauses and amendments within the U.S. Constitution that are vital to understanding the abundant litigation that occurred later. Next, it examines the United States’ approach to solving the issue of apportionment; a closely related issue to redistricting that determines how many Congressional representatives each state receives. Finally, the history of apportionment is contrasted with redistricting, answering the question: why can’t a similar solution be found for redistricting?
(more…)Democracy’s Dawn and Dusk: The Early Years of The Republic of China
By Zimo Tang, VI Form
Democracy’s Dawn and Dusk: The Early Years of The Republic of China
On October 9, 2021, the Chairman of the People’s Republic of China, Xi Jinping, gave a speech in front of the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. After the applause faded, Xi began to speak:
One hundred and ten years ago, Chinese revolutionaries represented by Dr. Sun Yat-sen stunned the world when they launched the Revolution of 1911… This year marks the 110th anniversary of the Revolution of 1911 and the centenary of the Communist Party of China (CPC)… We gather here to commemorate the historic exploits of revolutionary pioneers like Dr. Sun Yat-sen, to emulate and carry forward their lofty spirit of working with unshakable resolve to revitalize China, and to inspire and rally the sons and daughters of the Chinese nation at home and abroad to work together to realize the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
Jinping Xi, “Full Text of President XI’s Speech at Meeting Marking 1911 Revolution,” The National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (Institute of Party History and Literature of the CPC Central Committee, October 13, 2021)
In this speech, Xi Jinping honored the works of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, the revolutionary leader who ended China’s last imperial dynasty. Xi emphasized the phrase “rejuvenation of the Chinese nation,” which he had adopted as his primary political motto during his term as the Chairman.
More specifically, Xi believes that the Chinese people have been moving beyond the humiliations China suffered at the hands of colonial powers during the late nineteenth century and Japanese invaders during WWII. Xi aims to continue China’s rapid economic development of the late twentieth and twenty-first centuries because it is a sign of China’s revitalization from the past centuries’ humiliations. On this specific occasion, Xi drew inspiration from the Revolution of 1911 to inspire his colleagues as well as the Chinese people to reflect on past revolutions and connect them to the Communist Party’s contemporary mission of “building China into a great modern socialist country.”
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The Shen Prize Speech Competition: Contraction or Expansion of Democracy in American History
By Colin Capenito, Rosanna Zhao, and Matthew Gates, V Form
The Shen Prize Speech Competition: Contraction or Expansion of Democracy in American History
Editors’ Note: Below are three finalists of The Shen Prize Speech Competition
Winner–Colin Capenito: On The Federal Reserve and Democracy
Money. We work for it. We fight for it. We die for it. We live because of it. Whether you agree with this reality or not, there can be no denying that money is at the front and center of our society. And when something goes wrong with our money? We panic. And when we panic, we make rash decisions, decisions that often lead to unforeseen consequences. This happens every day on an individual level- panic tied to money. But what happens when this panic, followed by rash decision making, happens at a national level?
Well, we do not need to ponder over this question, because the answer already exists- and that is the Federal Reserve. The Federal Reserve Act was signed by President Woodrow Wilson on December 23rd, 1913. The act gave way to the creation of the Federal Reserve System in 1914, the central banking system that we still live under today.
Click here for the full speech!
Runner up–Rosanna Zhao: America and the Holocaust
During the start of World War II, a complete autocracy was becoming increasingly powerful across the oceans, spreading ideals that starkly contrasted American democracy. American democracy is not only the guarantee of social equality for every citizen of the country, but also the divine obligation to project social equality onto every corner of the world – a world without discrimination for race, ethnicity, or religion. On the other hand, Hitler led Nazi Germany to spread terror and oppression across Europe, erasing all traces of social equality for many minorities, especially Jews. (more…)
The Reach for Perfection in the Jacksonian Era
By Matthew Gates, V Form
The Reach for Perfection in the Jacksonian Era
Although Andrew Jackson, the seventh President of The United States, only held office from 1829 to 1837, he made a profound impact on American history. During “The Jacksonian Era,” (1816-1841) the economy boomed, technology advanced, American borders expanded, but most importantly, the common man gained a sense of importance, and American optimism and patriotism were “unbounded” and “infectious” (Remini 108). It was a time of “passionate commitment to democracy” (Remini 122).
In response to the boom in the economy and the growth of industry and materialism in America during the Jacksonian Era, the theme of Culture and Society is evident throughout the Transcendental Movement. This movement, which originated in Massachusetts, emphasized the divinity of man and his connections to God and stressed the beauty in nature in a society preoccupied with materialism. Transcendentalists such as Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson encouraged Americans to live more modestly and enjoy the simplicity of nature. Emerson referred to the growing obsession of the American people to gain wealth as “‘the demon of reform,’” thereby proving that the emergence of the Transcendental Movement was necessary to respond to the expansion of American industrialism and materialism (Remini 73). Even today, there are still Transcendentalists who believe in the importance of living humbly and recognizing the beauty in nature in daily life. (more…)
Moments of Significant Expansion or Contraction of U.S. Democracy
By Anthony D’Angelo, Sophie Haugen, Kaela Dunne, Rebecca Lovett, and Izzy (Minjae) Kim, V Form
Moments of Significant Expansion or Contraction of U.S. Democracy
The Shen Prize is a speech competition for V Formers responding to the prompt: What is a moment of significant expansion or contraction of United States’ democracy?
Below are links to the text of the speeches by the five finalists as well as the video of the actual speeches. The Shen Prize was bestowed upon Rebecca Lovett.
In order of appearance:
Anthony D’Angelo: The All-American Girl’s Professional Baseball League
Sophie Haugen: Xenophobia–Never the Answer
Kaela Dunne: Reclaim the Title “Home of the Brave”
Rebecca Lovett (Shen Prize): The Civil Rights Act of 1964–Greatest Expansion of Human Rights, Suffrage, Opportunity, and Democracy
Izzy (Minjae) Kim: Leveraging the “Soft Power” of the U.N. (more…)
On Defining a Nation in The Global Seminar
By Laura Sabino, III Form
On Defining a Nation in The Global Seminar
A nation does not need to have a large number of members or consist of one piece of land. A nation is a group of people that are connected to each other because there is something that unites them, such as a common leader or government.
Different nations can be defined by politics. Politically, a nation is a group of people that live in the same certain country, follow the government of said country, and live together as a community. In politics, a nation is a country’s land and all that is in it. However, different types of nations can share something in common that is unrelated to politics. This is like a music artist who has a nation of fans because those fans are brought together by something they all have in common: a love for the performer. (more…)
The Founding Fathers’ Intent and the Formation of the Constitution
By Joey Lyons, VI Form
The Founding Fathers’ Intent and the Formation of the Constitution
Throughout the country’s history, Americans have romanticized the nation-building work of the Founding Fathers. Since egalitarianism, liberty and democracy are central to the American mythos, Americans have often associated those ideals with the country’s founders. In making this association, Americans neglect the private interactions between the founders and, instead, focus on their public rhetoric. In public documents, most of the Founding Fathers expressed a desire to establish an inclusive democracy with majority rule. However, the founders, all of whom were in the economic elite, communicated different beliefs amongst themselves. Privately, the Founding Fathers wrote about their concerns over the possibility of oppressive majority rule by common people. As wealthy landowners, events, like the Rhode Island Currency Crisis and Shay’s Rebellion (both in 1786), (more…)
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