Disarticulation between Civic Values and Nationalism: Mapping Chinese State Nationalism in Post-handover Hong Kong

Drawing upon the ethnic-civic dialogue of nationalism, this article shows how Chinese state nationalism disarticulates from the civic values of Hong Kong in the post-handover years. Surveys from 2010 to 2016 in general reveal a dwindling pride in Chinese state nationalism in Hong Kong, and its disarticulation from the treasured values of civic rights and qualities in the city. As seen in this study, Hong Kong Chinese articulation of nationalism in the form of Chinese ethnic icons shrank throughout the study period. The same study also shows that neither civic values nor cultural pride in Hong Kong are conducive to the building of Chinese state nationalism, nor are they a significant impetus to cultural resistance against China’s nation-building project in Hong Kong. The article empirically shows the limitation of nation-building, which relies mainly on ethnic appeal but less on civic dimensions. It also discusses to what extent the ethnic-civic dialogue of nation-building could inform Chinese state nationalism and resistance to it in post-handover Hong Kong.