The “Leftist” Tendency of Upgrading Class Status during the Land Reform in the Shaan-Gan-Ning Border Region during the War of Liberation: A Case Study of Jia County in the Suide District

Abstract Following the National Land Conference of 1947, land reform that aimed at achieving “land to the tiller” commenced across the liberated areas. Classifying social classes was a prerequisite for carrying out this reform. However, in the Shaan-Gan-Ning Border Region, a widespread “leftist” tendency to upgrade class statuses occurred during the classification. This was not only due to deviations in policy implementation by grassroots cadres and the masses but also related to the complexities inherent in class classification itself. Additionally, it was a desperate measure on the part of the peasants of Northern Shaanxi, who, facing frequent natural disasters and general food shortages, actively sought to reclassify households with surplus grain in order to secure their own food resources.