Recession Migration // 10 of 12

Commuters board a train heading out of Guangzhou Train Station, Guangzhou, China, Jan. 17, 2009. Dubbed "the largest chronic migration of mankind," the 2009 "Spring Commute" (Chunyun) saw some 2 billion Chinese returning home for the Lunar New Year, of which over 200 million were migrant workers (Mingon) who traveled from rural areas to work in the cities. An unprecedented 13 million Mingons returned home early this year because they lost their jobs as victims of the...
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Commuters board a train heading out of Guangzhou Train Station, Guangzhou, China, Jan. 17, 2009. Dubbed "the largest chronic migration of mankind," the 2009 "Spring Commute" (Chunyun) saw some 2 billion Chinese returning home for the Lunar New Year, of which over 200 million were migrant workers (Mingon) who traveled from rural areas to work in the cities. An unprecedented 13 million Mingons returned home early this year because they lost their jobs as victims of the global financial crisis. For the first time, Guangzhou Train Station, China's biggest Chunyun terminal servicing the most migrant workers from the factory-heavy Pearl River Delta region, was crowded with Mingons who may not return after the holiday.
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