Sources of Public Support for the Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill Movement in Hong Kong: Localism or Others?

Abstract

ABSTRACT Localism has been conventionally regarded as a major determinant of public support for Hong Kong’s Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill Movement in 2019. The empirical evidence of the article did not provide support for such a reading. It found that localist orientation was positively correlated with supportive attitude towards the movement, but not correlated with supportive action for the movement, implying that localism had only limited power to motivate Hong Kong citizens to participate in the movement activities. On the other hand, negative attitudes towards Mainland China were found to have contributed to both supportive attitude towards and action for the movement. Localism and anti-Mainland China sentiments are not equivalent. It gives rise to confusion to label the movement a localist social movement based solely on its anti-Mainland elements.