Our Top Weekend Reads
China condemns America's human rights record, the United States is sliding into illiberalism, and workers will be the most vulnerable when businesses reopen.
China’s condemnation of racism and police brutality in the United States looks hypocritical in comparison to its own human rights record.
China’s condemnation of racism and police brutality in the United States looks hypocritical in comparison to its own human rights record.
Meanwhile, the strategic approach that led to China’s coronavirus response dates back further than President Xi Jinping’s rule.
And as businesses across the world begin the process of reopening after the pandemic, workers will be the group most vulnerable to another outbreak.
Here are Foreign Policy’s top weekend reads.
People gather in the rain outside of the White House for a peaceful protest against police brutality in Washington on June 4. Sarah Silbiger/Getty Image
1. As U.S. Injustices Rage, China’s Condemnation Reeks of Cynicism
The Chinese Communist Party is condemning the United States for its record on police brutality and racism, but China’s own human rights record raises questions about its motivations, Ho-fung Hung writes.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, shakes hands with former President Hu Jintao at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Oct. 24, 2017.Wang Zhao/AFP via Getty Images
2. China’s Steps Backward Began Under Hu Jintao
Xi’s predecessor presided over changes to the Chinese Communist Party’s internal system that set the stage for the reckless response to the coronavirus pandemic, Dan Blumenthal writes.
A stuffed doll of Pepe the Frog sits at the main entrance of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University campus in Hong Kong on Nov. 23, 2019. Anthony Kwan/Getty Images
3. Canada May Host the World’s First Incel Show Trial
A 17-year-old who allegedly killed a woman in Toronto due to his own sexual frustrations will be charged with terrorism. Simon Cottee asks whether men who identify with the online “incel” community should be treated as terrorists.
U.S. President Donald Trump leaves the White House to go to St. John’s Church in Washington on June 1. BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images
4. A Moment of National Shame and Peril—and Hope
The Trump administration’s response to protests in Washington could mark the country’s slide into illiberalism, John Allen writes.
Employees eat lunch at a Dongfeng Honda auto plant in Wuhan, China, shortly after returning to work, on March 23. STR/AFP via Getty Images
5. As Economies Reopen, It’s the Law of the Jungle for Workers
As communities and businesses around the world decide on the next tentative steps to loosen lockdowns and return to business, exposure to a possible second wave of coronavirus infections is the main worry, Michael Moran writes.
Dan Haverty is a former editorial fellow at Foreign Policy. Twitter: @dan_haverty
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