Commemorating Forty Years of “Reform and Opening Up”

December 2018 will mark the fortieth anniversary of the political events that shifted China into a higher economic gear, with the introduction of capitalist elements (e.g. market economy, foreign investment) in what became known as “socialism with Chinese characteristics” during Deng Xiaoping’s leadership. This article looks at the official exhibition that commemorates the anniversary, and provides a reflection on where we are, forty years later, and how the history of the reforms is used by the current leadership: “What does ‘opening up’ exhibition giving credit to SOEs and Xi Jinping say to China’s private firms?“