(Clearwisdom.net) During the annual 17-day Art Festival held in Point State Park in downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the afternoons of June 7 and 8, 2003 were filled with crowds of people immersed in a festive and fun atmosphere.
In order to let more people learn about the situation of American citizen and Falun Gong practitioner Dr. Charles Li, practitioners in Pittsburgh went to the park to collect signatures. Many passersby inquired, requested truth-clarifying literature and signed their names on the petition to call upon the American government to urge the Chinese government to immediately release Charles Li.
As we did not apply for a permit to hold a group activity in advance, the practitioners in groups of two or three scattered at the entrance and exit of the park to collect signatures. One practitioner held a sign stating, "Please sign to rescue a US citizen imprisoned in China for his belief." Passersby knew our purpose soon after they saw the sign. Another practitioner handed out flyers, clarified the truth and collected signatures. One practitioner demonstrated the sitting meditation.
Many passersby were attracted by the peaceful sitting meditation in such a noisy environment. An older couple saw our sign and knew that we were collecting signatures so they walked up to inquire about the details.
Three older veterans walked up to us. One of them saw the photo of Charles Li and asked, "Is this Dr. Charles Li? I'll sign." He told us that he subscribed to many newspapers and magazines and had already learned about the illegal detention of Dr. Charles Li. He was glad to have such an opportunity to sign his name to join the rescue effort.
A family of five came over. When a practitioner asked them, "Have you heard about Falun Gong?" They said yes and asked, "It seemed a PhD student's wife was imprisoned for practicing Falun Gong, how is she now?" The practitioner explained, "That is PhD Xu Cailu's wife, she has been released." "Really, that's great." When they learned that we were making an effort to rescue another Falun Gong practitioner and American citizen Dr. Charles Li, the entire family signed their names. Two of their teenage grandsons also carefully signed. Their daughter had received a flyer, and the elderly grandma wanted to have one more.
A middle-aged couple came over and the husband asked, "Are you Christians?" Practitioner answered no. The husband continued, "Though our beliefs are different, I still should sign my name." The practitioner replied, "Right, this is an issue of human rights violation." The husband asked his wife, "Do you want to sign?" His wife answered without hesitation, "Sure."
A mother and her daughter came over and said, "This is just what we are looking for. We finally find it." They signed their names and asked for information about practice site and Dafa websites, and then they left in satisfaction.
A young man walked over. After learning about the truth, he not only signed his name but also wanted to have a Falun Gong yellow T-shirt.
Three young men around 18 years old came over. They showed sympathy for the plight of Charles Li and signed their names on their own initiative.
More and more people took the initiative to sign their names and showed great concern for the persecution of a US citizen. Sometimes, people lined up to patiently wait to sign their names. They were quite serious and concerned. Some asked the practitioners, "Will our government take action?" There were also police officers coming to investigate. They saw our sign and said hello to us and then left.
We had been doing truth clarification on campus before, and this time we came to this park and had contact with people from all walks of life. We learned again that people are waiting to hear the truth. We are responsible for spreading the truth about Falun Dafa to the entire society in various ways.
Category: Rallies & Protests
