China Renames Homeless People ‘Dispersed Persons’ as Economic Pressures Mount

China Renames Homeless People ‘Dispersed Persons’ as Economic Pressures Mount

As China’s economic slowdown deepens, a growing number of unemployed rural migrant workers are being forced into homelessness in the cities. Now, a quiet change in official language is drawing scrutiny. China’s rubber-stamp congress introduced revisions to its draft Social Assistance Law, including a seemingly minor but symbolic shift: replacing the term “homeless beggars” with “dispersed persons,” according to an April 27 report by Chinese regi…