季風人文講壇 JF SALON
季風人文講壇9月份活動通知
JF Salon Announcement of September
九月的季風人文講壇，帶我們走進一場跨越中國與世界的時代對話。六場活動，從地緣政治到科技競爭，從自我審查的隱形壓力到香港法治的危機，再到戰火與土匪劫持的歷史記憶，皆折射出權力與自由的角力。我們邀請經濟政治學者、教授、記者與律師，分享他們的研究、著作與親身經驗，探問國家與個體、科技與社會、記憶與現實之間的縫隙。這些對話，不僅是知識的交流，更是一次次對未來的思考。
同時，九月也是季風書園落腳華盛頓DC滿一週年的月份！在這個特別的時刻，我們將於9月20日至28日舉辦 DC首屆華語獨立影像展映，呈現來自不同世代、不同地緣的真實影像與創作，敬請期待。
In September 2025, JF Salon continues its exploration of history, power, and identity with six compelling conversations across scholarship, journalism, and storytelling. From the rivalry shaping the U.S. and China, to the hidden mechanics of censorship, to the struggles for rule of law in Hong Kong, and the untold stories of China’s warlord era—this month’s events interrogate how individuals, institutions, and nations wrestle with forces far greater than themselves. Each dialogue is not merely academic; it is an invitation to reflect on the resilience of memory, the fragility of freedom, and the possibilities of change.
This September also marks one year since JF Bookstore made its home in Washington, D.C. To celebrate our anniversary, we are proud to host the first-ever Independent Sinophone Film Festival in DC, taking place from September 20–28. Stay tuned for more details, and join us in this new chapter of cultural exchange.
September 4th, Thursday, 6:00–7:30 PM｜In English
Dan Wang on Breakneck: China's Quest to Engineer the Future
Author Dan Wang discusses his new book Breakneck: China's Quest to Engineer the Future, driven by a few simple ideas: that Americans and Chinese are fundamentally alike—restless, eager for shortcuts, ultimately driving most of the world’s big changes. That their rivalry should not be reasoned through with worn-out terms from the past century like socialist, democratic, or neoliberal. And that both countries are tangles of imperfection, delivering—through competition—self-inflicted wounds beyond the wildest dreams of the other.
About the Speakers
Dan Wang is a research fellow at Stanford's Hoover History Lab. He was previously a fellow at the Yale Law School's Paul Tsai China Center and lived in China from 2017 to 2023 as the technology analyst at Gavekal Dragonomics. His essays have been published in the New York Times, The Atlantic, Foreign Affairs, Financial Times, New York Magazine, and more.
September 5th, Friday, 6:00–7:30 PM｜中文 In Chinese
Perry Link: How the Anaconda in the Chandelier Induces Self-Censorship — both Inside China and in the West
「吊燈裡的巨蟒」是林培瑞對極權統治的一種隱喻：頭頂上盤踞著一條巨蟒，雖然不會直接咬人，但它的存在足以讓人隨時感到恐懼，進而自我審查。中共自上世紀四〇年代起便在中國內部運用這種手法，八〇年代後更延伸到全球，使海外學界、媒體與政府也逐漸習慣於自我約束。本場演講將結合歷史、語言與當代觀察，剖析「巨蟒效應」的運作邏輯。
About the Speakers
Perry Link (林培瑞) is Emeritus Professor of East Asian Studies at Princeton University and retired as the Chancellorial Chair for Teaching Across Disciplines at the University of California, Riverside. A renowned scholar of modern Chinese literature and politics, he has published widely and contributed frequently to The New York Review of Books. He has been banned from traveling to China since 1996.
註：🔹 本場為「季風會員活動」，月捐會員可免費參加，請直接來信 info@jfbooks.org報名即可。This is a JF Member Event. Monthly donors may RSVP for free by emailing info@jfbooks.org
🔹 非會員可透過以下報名連結參加，酌收入場費 $15。Non-members are welcome to join via the ticket link below ($15 admission).
🔹 我們也誠摯邀請您加入季風會員計畫，支持更多自由思想的公共講座與策展：We warmly invite you to become a JF Monthly Member to sustain our nonprofit programming and enjoy exclusive access to future events:
📩 Become a JF Monthly Member
— $29/m｜季承者計畫｜支持我們每月持續舉辦深度對話與講座｜加入JFer 季承者計畫
— $99/m｜JF VIP 會員｜優先邀請、精選贈禮、年度會員活動｜加入JF Founding VIP計畫
September 10th, Wednesday, 6:00–7:30 PM｜In English
New Perspectives on U.S.-China Policy: National Security, Climate, Human Rights, Education
Featuring Fellows of the Penn Project on the Future of U.S.-China Relations
The fellows are tasked with developing recommendations for U.S. policy toward China rooted in their areas of expertise. Join us to hear reflections from four fellows writing on national security, climate, human rights, and education.
About the Speaker
Kyle Chan – Postdoctoral researcher in sociology at Princeton University and adjunct researcher at RAND Corporation. His work examines industrial policy, clean technology, and infrastructure in China and India.
Elsa Kania – PhD candidate in Government at Harvard and Adjunct Senior Fellow at CNAS, specializing in China’s military innovation and emerging technologies.
Yingyi Ma – Professor of Sociology at Syracuse University, Senior Fellow at Brookings, and author of Ambitious and Anxious (2020), focusing on education and migration.
Carl Minzner – Professor of Law at Fordham University and Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, author of End of an Era (2018), expert on Chinese politics and law.
September 12th, Friday, 6:00–7:30 PM｜In English
Eva Dou: Huawei and the Long Rise of China’s Tech Industry
In House of Huawei, Washington Post technology reporter Eva Dou pieces together a remarkable portrait of Huawei’s reclusive founder, Ren Zhengfei, and how he built a sprawling corporate empire—one whose rise Western policymakers have become increasingly obsessed with halting. Drawing on interviews and archival research, she dissects Huawei’s global web of power, money, surveillance, and national ambition.
About the Speakers
Eva Dou is an award-winning journalist based in Washington, D.C., writing about technology policy for The Washington Post. She was previously a foreign correspondent in Beijing for the Wall Street Journal and later The Post. Her reporting focuses on the intersection of technology and geopolitics.
September 16th, Tuesday, 6:00–7:30 PM｜In English
Eric Yan-ho Lai: Lawyers' Awakening Amid Political Crisis – Legal Resistance under Authoritarianism: The Struggle for the Rule of Law in Hong Kong
Legal Resistance under Authoritarianism examines / 在夾縫中抵抗 The decline of Hong Kong’s rule of law under China’s expanding authoritarian influence. While the 2020 National Security Law is seen as a turning point, Lai argues threats began as early as the 1997 sovereignty transfer. Based on extensive fieldwork, he reveals how a minority of legal professionals resisted state encroachment, highlighting Hong Kong’s role in global anti-authoritarian struggles.
About the Speaker
Dr. Eric Yan-ho Lai 黎恩灝 is a research fellow at the Center for Asian Law, Georgetown University Law Center. His work focuses on law and society, judicial politics, human rights, and national security in authoritarian regimes. His recent publications include Resistance Through the Cracks (2024) and Hong Kong's 2019 Protests Amid A Half-Century's Struggle (2025). Legal Resistance Under Authoritarianism is his first research monograph.
September 25th, Thursday, 6:00–7:30 PM｜In English
James Zimmerman: The Peking Express – The Bandits Who Stole a Train, Stunned the West, and Broke the Republic of China
The Peking Express tells the true story of China’s great train robbery of 1923—an episode of banditry, intrigue, heroism, and the chaos of the Warlord Era. The six-week hostage crisis, covered in newspapers worldwide, became a defining moment of modern China’s early twentieth century.
About the Speaker
James M. Zimmerman is a Beijing-based author and lawyer with over twenty-five years of experience in China. A leading foreign lawyer, he is the former four-term chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in China.
Moderator: Phelim Kine is a Washington-based China correspondent for POLITICO, covering Indo-Pacific security and hosting the weekly China Watcher newsletter.
我們的網上購書平台 (https://jfbooks.org) 已全面上線並持續更新，歡迎您選購心儀的作品！在這個初秋季節，無論身在何處，閱讀都會是您心靈的歸屬，讓思想的種子在讀書中生根發芽。季風書園攜帶知識的力量與人文的關懷，始終陪伴您左右。期待我們在DC相見！
Additionally, our online book platform (https://jfbooks.org) is fully launched and continuously updated. Welcome to purchase your favorite works! In this autumn season full of vitality, no matter where you are, reading will be the spiritual home of your mind, allowing the seeds of thought to take root in books. JF Bookstore brings the power of knowledge and humanistic care, always accompanying you. Looking forward to seeing you in Washington D.C!
敬請留意我們隨後公佈的每場活動的報名通知！
Please stay tuned for upcoming registration announcements for each event!
我們的活動會通過電子郵件通訊的方式進行註冊和報名，你可以在“About Us”頁面登記成為我們的讀者會員，活動消息亦同步發佈在我們的Twitter/Instagram/X/Facebook 平台，請您留意每場活動的報名通知。季風書園期待您的參與！
Our events are registered and signed up through email communications. You can register as our reader member on the "About Us" page. Event news is also simultaneously posted on our Twitter, Instagram, X, and Facebook platforms. Please pay attention to the registration notices for each event. JF Books looks forward to your participation!