For more than half a century many Uyghurs; members of a Muslim minority in northwestern China; have sought to achieve greater autonomy or outright independence. Yet the Chinese government has consistently resisted these efforts; countering with repression and a sophisticated strategy of state-sanctioned propaganda emphasizing interethnic harmony and Chinese nationalism. After decades of struggle; Uyghurs remain passionate about establishing and expanding their power within government; and China's leaders continue to push back; refusing to concede any physical or political ground.Beginning with the history of Xinjiang and its unique population of Chinese Muslims; Gardner Bovingdon follows fifty years of Uyghur discontent; particularly the development of individual and collective acts of resistance since 1949; as well as the role of various transnational organizations in cultivating dissent. Bovingdon's work provides fresh insight into the practices of nation building and nation challenging; not only in relation to Xinjiang but also in reference to other regions of conflict. His work highlights the influence of international institutions on growing regional autonomy and underscores the role of representation in nationalist politics; as well as the local; regional; and global implications of the "war on terror" on antistate movements. While both the Chinese state and foreign analysts have portrayed Uyghur activists as Muslim terrorists; situating them within global terrorist networks; Bovingdon argues that these assumptions are flawed; drawing a clear line between Islamist ideology and Uyghur nationhood.
#597508 in Books Michael L Satlow 2006-12-19 2006-12-18Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.00 x .80 x 6.00l; 1.06 #File Name: 0231134894340 pagesCreating Judaism History Tradition Practice
Review
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful. 35;000 feet view of Judaism. Putting things into perspectiveBy Mark EllinsI bought this book because of Michael's excellent Podcast of "From Israelite to Jew". He concluded the Podcast before the birth of the Rabbis and promised he would write a book explaining the phenomena. This book is a light attempt at the subject and up until modern times. On the positive side; I enjoyed the 35;000 feet view of the evolution of Judaism. He touched on the history in a perfect manner and showed us milestones of how Judaism twisted and turned throughout the centuries. He showed the beginning of Jewish philosophy with Philo; through the RAMABAM; Kabalah; Chasidism and eventually to the break-off sects during the emancipation of Jews in Europe. He hit it on the nose in explaining how Judaism morphed into what it is today. As a historian; he briefly showed what has happening in parallel in the non-Jewish world and how it could have influenced Jewish thought. I enjoyed this perspective very much. As a Jew; we sometimes dive deep into the technical part without ever seeing a birds-eye view of where we came from and how we got it here in terms of thought. We study Torah; HALACHA and Talmud as a type of competition of who can be most overloaded with Jewish thought without really sitting back and understanding the triggers and origins of these thoughts and practices.The real problem of this book is that is was too light for such an important subject. Michael skims over the history and in several instances says; "it would take too long to explain in detail". Again if you; the reader; are looking for a light version of Jewish thought history than this is a perfect book. If you want a little more intelligent meat; than you will be left hungry with this book. But Michael is a very good writer and I promise you will not be bored.This book is for beginner plus Jews. You have to have some background to Judaism and know a little about the history and practices but you do not have to be an expert. I would recommend reading a beginners book on Judaism before reading this. For non-Jews; I think this book can be interesting as to see how religion can morph because of social changes and reality on the ground. Last his bibliography is very good at the end.Enjoy!!! I know I did.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Cool bookBy CustomerI had to buy this for a Jewish studies class at my university. As someone who is actually Jewish; I found it to be very interesting; well organized; and had good comparisons thrown in (ie.; if you are Christian the author will help you understand). Great background and history.My only complaint is the kindle version is very strange. The page numbers are way off; which is frustrating because I had to write essays with citations from this book!1 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Well documented historical readBy David L. CairnsThis book gives a great overview of Judaism through the ages and how it evolved into what it is today.
