(Clearwisdom.net) On November 20, 2004, three thousand Falun Gong practitioners from around the world held a big rally on busy Madison Avenue in New York City. They formed a "Great Wall of Truth" on the street. In a comprehensive and in-depth manner, the event displayed to the people of New York what Falun Gong is about, and exposed the cruel persecution against Falun Gong in China. The event demonstrated a unified call for justice and conscience, to help rescue orphans of Falun Gong practitioners who have died in the persecution. The rally also called for legal action against Jiang, Luo, Liu and Zhou who are the prime perpetrators of the persecution, and called for a joint effort to put an end to the persecution.
The Prelude to a Series of Large-Scale Activities
On the early morning of November 18, Falun Gong practitioners began arriving in Manhattan one after another. They distributed truth-clarification flyers at different subway station entrances. By the time the first morning cloud had sprinkled rain on a subway station entrance near Time Square's big neon advertisement boards, Falun Gong practitioner Zhang Suxing had already finished distributing the stack of newspapers she had with her. Ms. Zhang is a chief administrator in a high school in Taiwan who took time off to come to New York from her busy school schedule to participate in the large-scale truth-clarification activities in Manhattan. On this morning, it was estimated that more than one hundred thousand copies of flyers had been handed out by Falun Gong practitioners within two hours.
  Exposing the persecution of Falun Gong in China |   Clarifying the truth to passers-by |   Clarifying the truth |
  Anti-torture demonstration |   Anti-torture demonstration |   Falun Gong exercise demonstration and truth clarification |
  A woman reading the truth-clarification material |   Signing the petition in support of Falun Gong |   Signing the petition in support of Falun Gong |
During lunchtime, several Falun Gong practitioners carried truth-clarification poster boards and walked around the major streets of Manhattan. Some practitioners conducted an anti-torture exhibition with live torture reenactments to display the cruel persecution endured by Falun Gong practitioners in China. Many passers-by were attracted by the exhibition. They stopped to observe, and asked practitioners what it was all about. When some people came to understand that the Chinese practitioners had endured such a brutal persecution for practicing meditation and for believing in "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance," they said that it was unimaginable. They signed their names on the petition letter to calling for an end to the persecution. Some wanted to learn the Falun Gong exercises on the spot.
At the corner of 34th Street and Broadway, actor Joe Leone passed by Japanese practitioner Qin Zhumei, who was holding a torture exhibition board. He did not take a flyer. However, he said, "I've already learned about Falun Gong. They have done very well. After seeing their anti-torture exhibition, I felt very sad. I signed my name on the petition letter. I hoped that I could help by donating some money. But they do not accept donations. I believed that they are not doing this for money. They truly want us to understand the persecution against Falun Gong in China. Many friends in my circle are talking about this."
A young man from Germany was shocked to see the live reenactment of the cruel torture scenes. He said he was staying in a nearby hotel, and he was sleeping because of jet lag. Yet, it was as if an unknown energy had awakened him and attracted him to come to the anti-torture exhibition site. He said, "That person who issued the order to persecute Falun Gong must be a lunatic who is extremely crazy. I hope this persecution will end as soon as possible."
Coming from Afar, Falun Gong Practitioners Work Tirelessly to Clarify the Truth and Call for an End to the Persecution
Falun Gong practitioners in Manhattan came from all over the world, including throughout North America, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Europe, and New Zealand.
Falun Gong practitioner Qin Zhumei is from Japan but grew up in Harbin, China. She is working as a nurse for a hospital in Japan. Her husband is a Japanese national who is not a Falun Gong practitioner. However, after seeing the positive changes in her mental state and improvements in her physical health from practicing Falun Gong, her husband fully supported her coming to New York to participate in this event.
Qin Zhumei said, "I know a female Falun Dafa practitioner who is currently being tortured in Harbin. When I was playing the role of a victim in the anti-torture exhibition, although it was only a display, I could feel the enormous pain practitioners have been enduring in China. My tears just kept flowing down my face. New York is the center of the world. People from around the world can see us here and learn the truth about Falun Gong."
According to Qin Zhumei, many practitioners came to New York three months ago. They pinched and scraped every day to save their money so they could come to Manhattan to clarify the truth about Falun Gong and the persecution in China. Some of them are housewives, and some are retired, elderly ladies. Some are staying in hotels, sharing the rooms with a number of practitioners. Every day when they go out to clarify the truth, they only bring with them a steamed bun and a bottle of water for their lunch. Some practitioners also used their savings to print truth-clarification flyers.
Qin Zhumei said, "The reason that practitioners make such great efforts is to let more people learn the truth about Falun Gong and to bring an end to this persecution."
Category: Rallies & Protests
