Comment by noxs

Protests still happen in China very often.

For example, the strike at BYD's factory due to wage cuts and silent layoffs a couple weeks ago [0] (the original QQ post was taken down under the NSL [1]), a work stoppages and strikes in Anhui [2], Guangzhou [3], and Shandong [4] a week ago, as well as Workers Call for Help (basically workers complaints to the govt that often turn into strikes if not listened to) [5]

The issue is Western reporters don't really use Chinese social media and aren't monitoring it, and in a lot of cases can't even really speak or read Mandarin.

Also, China is not that centralized. In most of these protests, the organizers take efforts to point out they are protesting against local functionaries, not Beijing - and they aren't wrong, as Deng's reforms devolved power significantly to the local and provincial level.

In China, it tends to be the working class and poor (rural and urban) that tend to protest the most as they have the least to lose and are the ones that face the brunt of economic slowdowns.

[0] - https://archive.is/dwGdd

[1] - https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/io1cSoE_i_pohJEoDOjkgw

[2] - https://v.kuaishou.com/EokPBo

[3] - https://v.kuaishou.com/CXrU74

[4] - https://v.m.chenzhongtech.com/fw/photo/3xxbacwt646zfwu?fid=3...

[5] - https://liuyan.people.com.cn/threads/mobilelist?tid=20864736...