(Clearwisdom.net) As May 13--"World Falun Dafa Day"--approaches, Falun Gong practitioners from New York and surrounding areas got together on May 9, 2009, in Union Square Park in Manhattan to hold a series of celebratory activities. They wanted to express their gratitude to Master Li , display the goodness of Falun Dafa, expose the persecution by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and tell the world's people the truth about Falun Dafa.

New York Falun Gong practitioners do the exercises in unison to celebrate World Falun Dafa Day

A little girl learns to do the exercises

Dr. Abraham learns to do the exercises

A lady learns to do the exercises

A lady learns to do the exercises

New York City councilor and mayoral candidate Tony Avella condemns the CCP's persecution of Falun Gong

Dr. Liu Guohua, a Flushing resident says, "'World Falun Dafa Day' means a lot to humanity."

Divine Land Marching Band performs "Falun Dafa Is Good," "Thank you, Master" and other pieces

A practitioner sings a song to celebrate World Falun Dafa Day

A practitioner sings a song to celebrate World Falun Dafa Day

Young practitioners perform Fan Dance to celebrate World Falun Dafa Day

Lawrence started practicing Falun Gong not long ago. He has quit smoking cigarettes and his bad habit of being lazy.

New practitioner Seth has benefited a lot since practicing Falun Gong. He influenced his brother, who started reading Zhuan Falun and overcame his drug addiction

Dragon Dance conveys a feeling of joy and peace

Chinese flavored waist drum performance

Practitioners wish Master a Happy Birthday

Hundreds of practitioners did the exercises in unison to the gentle music. The peaceful energy field impressed many passersby.

Ms. Regina Nemni quietly watched the practitioners, who represent many different ethnicities and cultural backgrounds, and whose ages range from four to ninety. She was reluctant to leave. It was the first time that she had ever heard about Falun Gong. She said, "They are so peaceful, I'm impressed. They can fall into deep tranquility in such a noisy square. This kind of strength touches my heart. What they bring to this world is the hope of humanity."

Regarding Falun Gong practitioners being subjected to the CCP's persecution only because they do peaceful exercises and conduct themselves according to Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, Mauro Pennacchia, Sr., an Italian who experienced Mussolini's fascist rule, said that the Communist Party is similar to the Fascists. It intends to control people, and they both fear independent thinking. Falun Gong practitioners have remained steadfast in Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, which is the strongest power of positive thinking.

A little girl named Laelle was also deeply impressed by the peaceful scene. She spontaneously followed the practitioners doing the exercises. She said, "The music is so beautiful, which makes me feel very relaxed. I gently closed my eyes, and immediately I felt a warmth around me. It seemed that I fell asleep, but I clearly knew that I stood on the ground. I felt great."

Dr. Abraham from the Dominican Republic was also one of those who imitated the practitioners doing the exercises. He said, "Something is wrong with my back, but it feels very good practicing Falun Gong. I'll practice it."

Mr. Tony Avella, New York City Councilor and mayoral candidate, said that it was a great honor for him to express his support for Falun Gong on this World Falun Dafa Day. He said that, as a New York City Councilor and mayoral candidate, he firmly opposes the CCP's persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. He noted that the CCP not only brutally persecutes Falun Gong practitioners in China, but has also been attempting to extend the persecution to the United States, something absolutely not allowed! He continued by saying that, if he is elected Mayor of New York City, he will recommend that companies not do business with the CCP unless it stops the persecution of Falun Gong.

Dr. Liu Guowei, a non practitioner living in Flushing, made a special trip to join practitioners in their celebration of "World Falun Dafa Day." "Falun Dafa teaches people to follow Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. It's God's salvation to mankind as morality degenerates in today's world. So I feel this day means a lot to humanity," said Dr. Liu.

Mr. Li, whose wife is a practitioner but he is not, always accompanies his wife to take part in similar activities. Mr. Li said, "I feel 'World Falun Dafa Day' is very important, because it is Mr. Li Hongzhi's birthday, and also the date when Falun Dafa was first introduced to the public. Celebration activities on a large scale should be held to let all New Yorkers learn that Falun Gong teaches people to follow Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. Besides promoting Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, another even more important point is to tell the whole world that the CCP is brutally persecuting Falun Gong, which goes against humanity and heavenly principles."

Mr. Jason Winters signed his name to oppose the CCP persecution of Falun Gong. He said, "As far as I know, Falun Gong is a profound qigong exercise, which has been subjected to the CCP persecution for ten years. I sympathize with Falun Gong practitioners, not only because they are suffering persecution that they should not suffer, but also because of what they practice. What Falun Dafa gives practitioners, just as God gives air for life, is invaluable and free. No matter how people treat the air, God always gives air to people for free. I understand that truly beautiful things and things from God must be free, and Falun Dafa is free."

Songs such as "Falun Dafa Is Good," "Thank You, Master," and "Buddha Mercy Sacred Music" performed by the Divine Land Marching Band expressed the practitioners' gratitude for Master's compassionate salvation. The audience applauded and cheered.

Several professional vocalists sang songs composed by Falun Gong practitioners, such as "Be Saved" and "At This Memorable Moment."They expressed all practitioners' high regard and esteem for revered Master. Young practitioners' pure and lovely dance manifested the joy of life.

Two new practitioners shared their positive changes after practicing Falun Gong. Lawrence said that he just started practice not long ago. Now he has quit smoking and also abandoned his bad habit of being lazy. His wife was very happy about his positive changes.

Seth found Falun Dafa on the Internet in his sophomore year at university. He said that his cultivation not only changed himself but also changed people around him. "After practicing, I understand the importance of being a good person. After the first semester, my grade point average improved from 2.2 to 3.9." Seith's great positive change also convinced his older brother to read Zhuan Falun. Now his brother has not only overcome drug addiction, but also has changed into a person who is healthy, tolerant, honest, diligent, and happy. "In the medical field, it's almost unheard of for anyone to get out of the clutches of heroin so quickly and regain a healthy life!" said Seth.

On this special "World Falun Dafa Day," practitioners conveyed their feelings of joy to the public with traditional folk dances, such as the Dragon Dance, Lion Dance, and Waist Drum performance. They also promoted traditional Chinese culture with a martial arts performance and a traditional Han couture show.

Ms. Ye, who has cultivated for many years, said that she has the same feeling as she did in previous years when celebrating this day. "This day is the most beautiful for cultivators. Nevertheless, due to the evil CCP's persecution, the practitioners also have to expose the persecution on this day."

Dr. Lin, who majored in biology, said, "World Falun Dafa Day is sacred for cultivators, because we know the significance for sentient beings at every level when Master imparted Dafa for the first time to the public. Not only do practitioners overseas celebrate this sacred day each year, but it is the same inside China."

At 4:00 p.m., the celebration activities came to an end with joyous shouts of "Falun Dafa is good" and practitioners' sincere wishes, "Master, Happy Birthday!"