(Minghui.org) Close to a thousand Falun Gong practitioners gathered in Brooklyn, New York on March 11, 2018, to raise awareness of the wonderful benefits of Falun Gong and of the ongoing persecution of the practice in China.
The practitioners held a multi-faceted parade along 8th Avenue and marched 14 blocks. Spectators were treated to traditional dragon and lion dances, beautifully decorated floats, a stirring marching band, and jubilant waist drummers. There were flags and banners telling of the benefits of the practice, of the wrongful persecution in China, and congratulating the hundreds of millions of Chinese people who have quit the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its affiliated organizations.
The Tian Guo Marching Band takes the lead in a March 11 Falun Gong parade in Brooklyn, New York.
A model of Zhuan Falun, the main book of Falun Gong. This book has been translated into 40 languages.
Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, the tenets of Falun Gong.
Falun Gong practitioners hold a parade in Brooklyn, New York, on March 11, 2018.
“End the Persecution, Disintegrate the CCP”
The banner from the Global Service Center for Quitting the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
“300 Million Chinese People Have Quit the CCP”
The waist drummers are always an exciting component of Falun Gong parades.
The sidewalks were packed with spectators who were excited and surprised by the magnificent scene. Many of them took photos, videos, or live-streamed the event on the Internet.
Brooklyn residents enjoyed the music of the Tian Guo Marching Band and referred to the parade as “beautiful,” and “majestic.” They were also glad to see that Falun Gong practitioners have freedom of belief in the U.S., while those of Chinese ethnicity expressed pride that traditional Chinese culture is embraced across the world.
An elderly man who came to the U.S. from Taishan, China a year ago, commented, “Falun Gong practitioners are amazing and powerful! Everything said in Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party, which was written by them, is true!” The man’s father died in the Cultural Revolution and he also was persecuted during that time.
Some Chinese people who'd just come to the U.S. didn’t expect to see Falun Gong practitioners freely displaying their belief. “I wouldn't have imagined that there are so many [people practicing Falun Gong],” said a father who watched the parade with his son.
A couple who'd just immigrated to the U.S. from Hong Kong said that they were “glad to see Falun Gong practitioners here.” They came to the U.S. because of the worsening political relations between Hong Kong and China and diminishing democracy in Hong Kong. “We are having a hard time fighting communism,” they said. The wife remarked that overseas support for Falun Gong practitioners in China is very important. “Without it, the CCP would be even more unscrupulous,” she said.
A young Chinese man from Fujian Province, China kept videotaping the parade. “It makes me proud because parades by Chinese people are seldom seen on such a large scale. There are also non-Chinese in this grand parade,” he noted.
A mother with a child said that the three principles of Falun Gong, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, touched her the most. “The feeling is beyond description,” she said. “It’s spectacular and wonderful.”
