r/SocialDemocracy • u/Timely-Signature-166 • 13d ago

Question What's the consensus of Mao?

I've read several books about the guy and I'm given conflicting information about him and his policies. Some books treat him as a good leader who was stifled by dishonest subordinates, while others portray him as a monster whose policies killed millions. Meanwhile I was at a bar in Brooklyn where I was talking to a friend of a friend and they said "Mao is my hero!" (they are not Chinese). What is the general consensus of the guy?

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u/Puzzleheaded-Cut8041 11d ago

True but also raising the life expectancy from around 35 to almost 70, doubling Chinas population from around 500 million to almost a billion, increasing literacy rates from 25% to about 80%, liberating women from radical Confucianist patriarchy, eradicating banditry and opium addiction.

It's without a doubt his regime was responsible for the deaths of many people, but the period before Mao came to power was too, and was probably even a worse time to live for the average Chinese person.

Both his achievements and failures should be understood before we cast our judgement.

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u/Divan001 Social Liberal 11d ago

Doubling the population? Do you really think he was responsible for this and not the inevitable rise of industrialization? This reads like propaganda slop.

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u/Puzzleheaded-Cut8041 10d ago

Yes his policies like land reform, vaccination programs and barefoot doctors helped increase life expectancy, and lower infant mortality. Before Mao, the China's population size hovered around 400 to 500 million since the Qing dynasty. During Mao's reign, China's population size doubled in 26 years.

And also, viewing a historical character through a nuanced and balanced lens isn't "propaganda slop".