Chinese Leader Tightens Grip on Power Through Vast Network of Institutes That Teach ‘Xi Jinping Thought’

A decorative plate featuring an image of Chinese leader Xi Jinping is seen behind a statue of late communist leader Mao Zedong at a souvenir store next to Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China on Feb. 27, 2018. GREG BAKER/AFP via Getty Images

Chinese leader Xi Jinping is solidifying his control over Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials and the wider populace by establishing institutes around the country to propagate his eponymous dogma—known as “Xi Jinping Thought.”

Since becoming the CCP’s paramount leader in 2012, Xi has moved to centralize power and encourage a personality cult echoing back to the Party’s first ruler Mao Zedong, analysts have noted. A key plank of this strategy is the dissemination of Xi’s own political ideology, officially called “Xi Jinping Thought for Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era.”