CHINA Town Hall: "Chinese Investment in the United States"

The Institute for Chinese Studies (Ohio State University), in partnership with the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations and the Mershon Center for International Security Studies (OSU), is pleased to announce the ninth annual CHINA Town Hall, to take place on Monday evening, 5 October 2015. The annual CHINA Town Hall events are free and open to the public.

CHINA Town Hall is a national day of programming on China involving 70 cities throughout the United States. This event, the ninth CHINA Town Hall, consists of a live, national webcast and a local speaker, and is free and open to the public.

PROGRAM

At The Ohio State University, the evening's program commences at 6:00 pm with our local speaker, Professor Rian Thum (Loyola University New Orleans), followed by a one-hour, live, national webcast beginning at 7:00 pm.

7:00 - 8:00 PM - Live National Webcast
"Chinese Investment in the United States"
National Panel Discussion with Secretary Robert Rubin, Mayor Sheldon Day and Mr. Daniel Rosen
-See webcast panel bios and photos-

This year's national webcast is a panel discussion focusing on the findings of a new report by the National Committee and Rhodium Group on the recent growth of Chinese foreign direct investment in the United States. The report, titled “New Neighbors: Chinese Investment in the United States by Congressional District,” breaks down for the first time Chinese commercial investment in the United States by congressional district.

Former Secretary of the Treasury Robert Rubin, Mayor Sheldon Day (Thomasville, Alabama), and Mr. Daniel Rosen, founding partner of Rhodium Group, will discuss the impact of Chinese investment in the United States, including job creation, revitalization of economically depressed areas, infrastructure improvement, and the deepening of ties between the people of the two countries, all of which help strengthen the overall bilateral relationship.

National Committee president Steve Orlins will moderate this one-hour portion of the program, comprised of a 30-minute discussion followed by half an hour during which the panelists will respond to questions submitted by audience members throughout the country.

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6:00 - 6:50 PM - Local Speaker Presenting at The Ohio State University

Abstract:
The concept of “minorities” (少数民族) is a pillar of China’s current ethnic policy. Beneath this concept’s sheen of mathematical impartiality, diasporas and colonies become indistinguishable, while state policies toward "minorities" veer from assimilation to benign neglect without any sign of contradiction. Rian Thum outlines the origins of this powerful term and its relation to earlier Chinese ways understanding difference. He then analyzes its effects on various peoples who have been labeled minorities, focusing on the Uyghurs and comparing them to the Hui, Miao, and others.

Bio:
Rian Thum is a specialist in the history of Islam in China, Uyghurs, and Chinese money. His book, The Sacred Routes of Uyghur History (Harvard University Press, 2014), argues that the Uyghurs - and their place in China today - can only be understood in the light of longstanding traditions of local pilgrimage and manuscript culture. He is currently preparing a study of the role Islamic networks have played in connecting China to India. As an assistant professor of history at Loyola University New Orleans, he teaches classes on global and Chinese history, revolution in China, money, and historical anthropology.