Citizens versus Experts: Historic Preservation in Globalizing Shanghai

Shao studies citizen preservation in the global city of Shanghai. The pursuit of economic growth has led to large-scale demolition of residential homes and historic structures there since the late 1980s. It has also given rise to citizen involvement in historic preservation. In 2002, Lincoln Lane, a neighborhood built in the 1920s, faced demolition. The residents launched a campaign to preserve their Lane. They documented the significance of the Lane, petitioned the local government, contacted the media in and outside China, and reached out to the people of Springfield, Illinois, President Abraham Lincoln's hometown, for support. Some renowned Chinese experts on urban preservation initially supported their causes but eventually sided with the local government, which resulted in the demise of the Lane. This study explores the conflict among the citizens, the experts, and the government, and the politics and economics in historic preservation. It also demonstrates global influence in historic preservation. While the advance of global capitalism was the ultimate cause of the demolition, globalization has also provided the residents with not only a heightened awareness of historic preservation but also more resources to argue for that cause.