ABSTRACT
The 1949 Chinese Communist victory in its civil war with the Nationalists is known as “Liberation” in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The history of Liberation is complex and varies across regions in China. The Communist takeover in the Southwest was feared by many but also welcomed; the complicated response must be understood in the context of the earlier history of the region, particularly by the years of war against Japan and their aftermath. After an overview of conditions in the Southwest in the late 1940s, the chapter explores the life experiences of Li Jieren (1891–1962), a prominent cultural figure in the Southwest, to illustrate how the Communists were received in the region. Li Jieren’s willingness to take a position working for the new regime demonstrates that, in the aftermath of their military takeover, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could call on the services even of people who were extremely wary of political authority. In the economically struggling Southwest, the Communist vision of rapid industrialization had a strong appeal among those elites who had worked for decades to develop its economy and cities.
