Pennsylvania: Rally Honors 420 Million Chinese Who Quit the CCP, State Assembly Voices Support

(Minghui.org) Practitioners from the Greater Philadelphia area held an event in Chinatown on October 15, 2023, to expose the 24-year-long persecution of Falun Dafa in China and celebrate the 420 million people who withdrew their memberships in the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) organizations. That day, the Pennsylvania State Assembly issued a proclamation endorsing the campaign of quitting the CCP. State Senator Sharif Street attended the event and gave a speech. Thirty-five Chinese people decided to withdraw from the regime during the event. 

Falun Dafa practitioners held an event in Philadelphia’s Chinatown on October 15 to expose the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) persecution including live organ harvesting of practitioners for profit. 

State Senator Sharif Street (second from left) attended the event and gave a speech. 

Passersby asked about Falun Dafa and signed petitions to show their support. 

During the gathering, some practitioners talked about the persecution they witnessed in China and explained why one should renounce the CCP organizations. A representative from Doctors Against Forced Organ Harvesting (DAFOH) pointed out how Western society can help end the atrocities. 

Citation from House of Representatives

Citation sponsored by State Representative Mary Isaacson.

Mary Isaacson, a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, sponsored a citation that was issued by the House of Representatives that day:

“Whereas, this rally supports the peaceful “Quitting the CCP” global movement since 2004, the largest grassroots movement in the history of human civilization; and

“Whereas the movement has allowed Chinese people around the globe to break free from the regime’s state-wide propaganda machine and 74 years of brutal, repressive campaigns that have deprived the Chinese people of their spiritual heritage and basic human rights; and

“Whereas, the CCP has killed over 80 million of its own citizens through these campaigns, including the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution, the Tiananmen Square Massacre, and the persecution of Falun Dafa practitioners, Christians, Uyghurs, Tibetans, and others; and

“Whereas, the quit the CCP movement has been empowering people around the world with an awareness of the deceptive nature and the extremist historical behaviors of the communist party; and

“Whereas, there is a growing awareness of the CCP’s eminent threat to the world, the international community has realized the importance of stopping the tyranny of communist China and ending the CCP’s global threat; and

“Whereas, the quit the CCP movement has brought to the international community a renewed vision of a world without communism through a peaceful movement; and

“Now therefore, The House of Representatives support the “Quit the CCP Movement” and congratulate the 420 million brave Chinese people who have severed their ties with the CCP for the positive step to secure their own future, who also will help to usher in a new age in China, which will improve the security of the whole world.”

State Senator: Stopping Forced Organ Harvesting

State Senator Sharif Street spoke at the rally. 

State Senator Sharif Street came to the event. He was pleased to see so many people standing up and countering the totalitarian CCP regime and defending freedom. 

“Organ harvesting shouldn’t happen at any place in this world. No living persons should be killed for their organs,” he said. “It’s terrible!” The CCP should end such tragedies immediately. 

Practitioners held similar events in Chinatown many times and Senator Street attended some of them. He praised practitioners’ efforts and said they can help educate Americans to know what is going on in China. With persistence and joint efforts, he believes people will be able to end the CCP’s persecution. 

Crimes Against Humanity

Jessica Russo from Doctors Against Forced Organ Harvesting (DAFOH).

Jessica Russo, a representative from Doctors Against Forced Organ Harvesting (DAFOH), said the CCP began to suppress Falun Gong in 1999. A large number of practitioners were kept in labor camps, brainwashing centers, and prisons for their belief. In the meantime, the number of organ transplants increased dramatically since 2000. 

Evidence of forced organ harvesting was also found. In the United States and many other countries with a voluntary donation system, patients often have to wait at least one year to receive organs. In China, the wait time is usually weeks or even days before matching organs are available. This is because many Falun Dafa practitioners are detained and they can be subjected to forced organ harvesting at any time. This is a crime against humanity launched by the CCP and implemented by the regime. Unfortunately, this large-scale tragedy is still continuing today. 

Independent research from renowned experts in the past 10-plus years has shown China conducted between 60,000 and 100,000 organ transplants each year with Falun Dafa practitioners as the main organ source. These numbers are much higher than those published by the CCP, making China the country with the highest number of organ transplants. 

Poet: Exposing the Viciousness

Poet Euraina Jerry was shocked by the CCP’s brutality. 

Euraina Jerry from Philadelphia stopped at the event and listened to practitioners’ speeches. “I can’t believe this is going on. It’s heartbreaking that human beings are treated like this,” she said. “But it’s good to know that people are standing up. You have to be fearless.”

While signing a petition to help practitioners, Jerry said she would do her best to end communism. Having published poems in the past, she said she would look into organ harvesting and oppose the crime through her poetry. 

Saving Lives

Daniel Maher said he stands with Falun Dafa practitioners. 

Daniel Maher is a retired worker and said he likes Chinese culture and Chinese people. He hopes more people can enjoy the freedom Americans have. He said he knew Falun Dafa is a peaceful meditation system that brings enormous benefits. 

He said this rally “is wonderful and a very noble thing,” because forced organ harvesting is barbaric. What Falun Dafa practitioners do will save many lives and stop the CCP from covering up the truth. The CCP must be abolished, he added. 

A Better World

Ji from China said he was glad to see Falun Dafa practitioners. He attends Shen Yun performances every year and said he likes the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. When he travels to South Korea, Greece, Italy, and other countries on business trips, he often sees Falun Dafa practitioners at major tourist sites. He respects practitioners and believes the world will be a better place if more people follow the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. 

Ji said the CCP is vicious and the forced organ harvesting from practitioners is brutal. But this is not surprising since it is consistent with the CCP’s evil nature. He said that he believes the regime will soon become history.