FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

China lecture and photo exhibit

LEWISTON, Maine -- William Hinton, author of the acclaimed book "Fanshen: A Documentary of Revolution in a Chinese Village," will discuss "Suspended Revolution: Long Bow Village Fifty Years On" Tuesday, Dec. 8, at 4:10 p.m. in Skelton Lounge of Chase Hall. The public is invited to attend free of charge.

In addition to Hinton's lecture, a photographic exhibit by Bates students in China during the fall semester 1997, "Portraits of Our Perceptions," will open with a reception Monday, Dec. 7, at 7 p.m. in the Ronj.

In an effort to reveal the essence of the transformation created by the Chinese revolution, Hinton first gathered the material for his book in 1948 during the heart of local land reform. The Nation called his work "an extraordinary book." Hinton's talk at Bates, accompanied by photographs from the region, will focus on Long Bow Village 50 years after its first effort to overturn centuries of feudalism.

According to Maggie Maurer-Fazio, associate professor of economics at Bates, Hinton is one of a handful of Americans with the special status of "friend" conferred by both the Chinese government and people. During the heyday of McCarthyism, U.S. Customs officials confiscated the materials gathered by Hinton when he returned home in 1953. Five years of struggles with the government preceded the return of Hinton's notes so that he could finally write his book.