(Clearwisdom.net) "Philly Carnival 2003" was held on June 14th in Fairmount Park in Philadelphia. It was sponsored by the Philadelphia Multicultural Carnival Association (PMCCA), and modeled after lively street festivals of the Caribbean Islands, including band performances, dances, including a mask dance. Falun Gong practitioners were invited to participate as a representative of Chinese culture.
The Multicultural Carnival attracted several thousand people, including 13 groups from countries in the Caribbean Islands, Africa, Asia, Latin America, and South America. Falun Gong practitioners' performances were quite outstanding, including a lively traditional Chinese lion dance, a colorful and beautiful fan dance, a peaceful Falun Gong exercise demonstration, and a lively drum performance. The banners with the words, "Falun Dafa" and "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance" were quite eye-catching.
The chairman of the sponsor, Jerome Henry, introduced, "This activity is to allow communication among different cultural groups so as to increase diversity and promote freedom." He said that Falun Gong practitioners' performances were wonderful! Colors were bright and beautiful. He especially liked the fan dance. He thought it inconceivable that Falun Gong is being persecuted in China. He said, "People are free in the Caribbean Islands, we're a democratic country."
Caribbean Islands is composed of more than ten small countries. According to the host, there are about 20,000-30,000 Chinese people living on the Islands, while the population is mainly composed of black people. The host especially thanked Falun Gong practitioners for bringing Falun Gong to the Caribbean people.
Every activity is an opportunity to clarify the truth, and also an opportunity to create more opportunities for the future. This time we were invited to participate in the carnival parade because the host saw our wonderful performance in the New Year's "Mummers' Parade" this year in Philadelphia. During this parade, we were also invited to participate in a State Senator's celebration activity to be held on a future date.