Policing in China focus of next Conversations on Race and Policing and Modern China Lecture Series

Suzanne Scoggins, associate professor of political science at Clark University, will be the guest speaker when the university’s Conversations on Race and Policing and Modern China Lecture series present “Policing China: Street Level Cops in the Shadow of Protest.”

Scoggins’ talk takes its title from her latest book, and is scheduled for 1 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 19, on Zoom. The talk is free and open to the public, and can be accessed from a PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android at https://csusb.zoom.us/j/97960458784.

According to the publisher’s website, Scoggins’ book “delves into the paradox of China’s self-projection of a strong security state while having a weak police bureaucracy. Assessing the problems of resources, enforcement, and oversight that beset the police, outside of cracking down on political protests, Scoggins finds that the central government and the Ministry of Public Security have prioritized ‘stability maintenance’ (weiwen) to the detriment of nearly every aspect of policing. The result, she argues, is a hollowed out and ineffective police force that struggles to deal with everyday crime.”

About Conversations on Race and Policing
Conversations on Race and Policing, also known as CoRP, began in the aftermath of the May 25, 2020, death of George Floyd while in the custody of four Minneapolis, Minn., police officers. A video of the incident posted on social media led to widespread protests, the firing of four police officers, the arrest and conviction of one officer on a second-degree murder and related charges, the other three on charges of aiding and abetting second-degree murder – and a spotlight worldwide on race and policing.

The series has featured scholars, journalists, law enforcement officers, lawyers, activists, artists, educators, administrators and others from throughout the nation who shared their experience and expertise on issues related to race and policing.

More than 50 forums have taken place, and video recordings of the sessions are posted online on the Conversations on Race and Policing Lecture Series Archive. 

The fall lineup of Conversations on Race and Policing, each at 1 p.m. on Wednesdays, include:

• Oct. 26: Details pending.
• Nov. 2: In Conversation with Michael German, of the Brennan Center for Justice, with guest host Brian Levin, director of CSUSB’s Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism.

The series is organized by CSUSB students, staff and faculty, including recent history master of arts graduate, Cecelia Smith; history MA student  Matt Patino; Mary Texeira, professor emerita, sociology; Jeremy Murray, professor of history; Robie Madrigal, public affairs/communication specialist for the CSUSB John M. Pfau Library; and community member Stan Futch, president of the Westside Action Group.

For more information, contact Robie Madrigal at rmadriga@csusb.edu or Jeremy Murray at jmurray@csusb.edu.

About the Modern China Lecture Series
The Modern China Lecture Series was initiated to promote awareness of important issues related to China for those on the Cal State San Bernardino campus and in the community.

In the series of more than 60 lectures, workshops, film screenings and roundtable forums since January 2014, China scholars from UC San Diego, UC Riverside, the Claremont Colleges, UCLA, USC, UC Irvine, Columbia, Oxford and other institutions have visited the CSUSB campus to share their expertise and opinions.

Speakers in the series have included specialists in history, economics, political science, philosophy, finance, security studies, literature, anthropology and other fields.

Upcoming Modern China Lectures include:

• Nov. 2, 4 p.m., “Frontier Fieldwork: Building a Nation in China’s Borderlands, 1919-45,” by Andres Rodriguez, professor of history, The University of Sydney.

The series cosponsors this year are the CSUSB Department of History, the History Club/Phi Alpha Theta, the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, the Jack H. Brown College of Business and Public Administration, and the Intellectual Life Fund. Series organizers are Murray and Alexander Serrano.

For more information on the Modern China Lecture Series, contact Jeremy Murray, associate professor of history, at jmurray@csusb.edu.