From Ethnic identity to a “Common Consciousness of Chinese Nationality” for Xinjiang Uyghur Youths

• In Event: Education for Ethnic, National and Global Identities in China

Proposal

Abstract: The Inland Boarding Program (IBP) for Xinjiang students is a national educational project launched by the Chinese central government since 2000, whose policy goal is to promote national unity and ethnic solidarity through relocating a selected group of minority students from the border area of Xinjiang to study in boarding high schools in Chinese eastern cities. Throughout the three-year or four-year high school period (usually Grades 10-12 in China), these students would stay on campus for the most time of the year away from their families and communities except for the summer vacation, and study along with the local Han students and teachers on a daily basis. For many minority youths, the transition from ethnic communities in Xinjiang to inland Han-dominant schools during the high school age is a critical life event. How do these minority youths reflect on their schooling experiences in the IBP program? What are their expectations, gains and possibly losses from participating in the program? How do their ethnic identity and national identity develop and change in the process? What factors contribute to their identity formation?
Based on in-depth interviews on the life stories of three Xinjiang Uyghur minority youths (two males, one female) who graduated from the Inland Boarding Program and were currently working in different cities of Xinjiang, this study seeks to examine the impact of IBP experiences on their ethnic identity and national identity construction. Findings indicate that the three minority youths reported to have undergone tremendous personal growth due to participation in the IBP, from being able to take care of themselves and make independent decisions in daily life to having more opportunities to speak Mandarin and develop co-ethnic and cross-ethnic friendships. Compared with peers who stayed in Xinjiang for high school, the Uyghur youths with IBP experiences expressed strong attachment to the inland cities they once lived and studied, and demonstrated cosmopolitan and detached attitudes towards national policies, in particular with regards to ethnic affairs. Long-time exposures to and interactions with the dominant Han culture and Han people, through various kinds of deliberate “mainstreaming” and “mixing” practices and extracurricular activities both on-campus and off-campus, contribute to the “common consciousness of the Chinese nationality” to be formed and internalized in them. On the other hand, strong family bonds and co-ethnic networks persist in spite of the geographical distance and continue to influence the Uyghur youths, leading them to maintain a distinct ethnic identity. Moreover, the systematic “preferential treatment” school policies and practices as well as the prevalent social discourses and stereotypes towards Xinjiang the border area and the Uyghur group in the mainstream Han society, highlight their group differences and reinforce their recognition of being ethnic minorities while living and socializing among the local Han teachers and classmates.

Author

• Donghui Zhang, Renmin University of China