Abstract:This paper will investigate a series of practical activities carried out by Ling Guangdianꎬ an elite of " Yi" (Chi ̄ nese transliterationꎬ meaning " foreigners" ) peopleꎬ to pursue their own political recognition in the period of the republic of China. Moreoverꎬ this paper discusses the efforts made by " Yi" people in Sichuan and Xikang to seek their identity in the discourse system of the modern national-state in the period of the republic of China before the widespread identifica ̄ tion initiative of national identitiesꎬ through which it tries to respond to the western scholars′ criticism to the new China′s ethnic policies. It is pointed out that the current pattern of multi-ethnic coexistence in China does not originate from the mandatory construction under the leadership of state powerꎬ but come as the double effect of government′s organizations and ethnic minorities′ voluntary participation in accordance with the historical continuity.