Protest From Unexpected Corners: Barbers, Labour Unions, and Compulsory Masking in Modern China, 1930s–1940s

Abstract

This article examines resistance from below to compulsory masking in modern China, from the 1930s to the 1940s. Initially marginalised and stigmatised by traditional social hierarchy and modern bacteriology, barbers became central actors to protest the discriminatory masking regulations. Through case studies from cities such as Jiujiang and Beijing, this study explores how the critical role labour unions played in organising barbers to resist the state-imposed health measures. Their opposition was not only a rejection of modern hygienic practices but also a demand for dignity and class recognition as an emerging working class. The analysis also underscores the negotiated compromises between the barbers and the government that influenced broader practices. By examining the intersections of labour movements, state authority, and hygienic governance in early twentieth-century China, this article provides new insights into how occupational identities and class dynamics influenced resistance to public health policies during the Republican era of China.