Marriage Unbound: Divorce in Rural China
This event was recorded on September 15, 2022.

About the Event

Divorce rates in China have risen sharply over the past three decades, as socioeconomic transformations have reshaped family life and gender relationships. Assistant Professor Ke Li of John Jay College of the City University of New York will discuss her book Marriage Unbound: State Law, Power, and Inequality in Contemporary China. Drawing on years of ethnographic and archival research, paired with unprecedented access to the grassroots court system, this book closely examines Chinese women’s struggles with divorce litigation. In this way, Professor Li elevates otherwise unheard voices and unpacks the complex interplay of law and politics in an authoritarian state.

About the speaker

Ke LI is an assistant professor of political science at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Her research focuses on law and society in contemporary China. Her recent research focuses on divorce litigation, impact litigation by LGBTQ groups, and resolution of doctor-patient disputes. She holds an LLB from Nanjing University, and an MA in criminal justice and PhD in sociology and criminal justice from Indiana University.