(Minghui.org) Xi Jinping, head of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), arrived in Washington, DC, and stayed at the Waldorf Hotel on September 23, 2026. The building was surrounded by a high wire fence. He was greeted by crowds who were reportedly hired by the Chinese regime to wave red flags. Their shouts and loud music pierced the normally quiet evening in downtown Washington. Tibetan groups and human rights activists from throughout the US protested Xi’s visit.

Falun Gong practitioners stood quietly on both sides of main roads in downtown Washington, DC, holding banners and raising awareness of the CCP’s ongoing persecution of Falun Gong in China. They called on the CCP to end the persecution. 

Falun Gong practitioners lined main roads in downtown Washington, DC, on September 23, 2026 and silently protested the ongoing persecution. (Minghui.org)

Hoang from Los Angeles said, “I traveled from California and arrived in Washington, DC, this morning. I hardly slept and came straight here.” He held a banner with other practitioners. The message “Disintegrate the CCP, End the Persecution” was on the banner. Hoang said it was very important to be in DC during Xi’s visit to convey the message, and expose the regime’s appalling crimes against humanity.

“This persecution began on July 20, 1999. As this persecution has long been shrouded in darkness, many people in the world don’t know about it, so it continues and even seems to be spreading. We often say, the evil is like cancer, it will keep spreading. Therefore, we must expose the truth, expose this heinous evil,” Hoang said.

He has been practicing Falun Gong for a decade and says he wants to tell Xi Jinping: “It is long past time to end this severe persecution which targets kindhearted people in China. From the very beginning, this persecution has impacted over a hundred million people – the vast majority of whom are Han Chinese. These are not members of an ethnic minority group, nor are they simply individuals singled out and labeled for persecution; rather, they represent the mainstream of the Chinese population. Through taking organs from [Falun Gong practitioners], the CCP is making money. This horrific crime must not be allowed to spread further, all this must come to an end.”

He choked up with emotion when he spoke of Falun Gong practitioners who continue to be persecuted by the CCP in China, and said, “Falun Gong practitioners all over the world stand firmly in support of fellow practitioners in China. We understand the extent of the persecution they endure and the difficult circumstances they face. I hope they persevere, I want to say to them: ‘You are very brave.’”

Hoang (first on left), traveled from Los Angeles to take part in the protests and held up a banner with other practitioners. “Help Stop Persecution of Falun Gong in China” is written on the banner. (Minghui.org)

Zhou Gui, who is an accountant in the greater Washington DC area and practices Falun Gong, said she took time off from work to take part in the protests. She held up a banner with several other practitioners. The words “The World Needs Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance” were written on it.

Zhou Gui’s mother, Wang Youmei, is still detained in China.

“My mother was arrested on April 15 this year, and she is still imprisoned in the first detention center in Wuhan. It’s because she practices Falun Gong and conducts herself according to Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. She was arrested while she read the teachings with a group of practitioners.”

Zhou Gui said her mother has been arrested and detained five times in China for refusing to give up her belief.

She wants to tell Xi Jinping: “There is nothing wrong with believing in Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. Stop persecuting Falun Gong, and release all detained Falun Gong practitioners including my mother.”

Zhou Gui (second left) is an accountant in the greater Washington, DC, area and practices Falun Gong. Her mother Wang Youmei is currently detained in China. (Minghui.org)

Before Xi Jinping’s arrival, on September 21, three Congressmen and two Senators (Senator Chris Van Hollen from Maryland, Senator Jeffrey Merkley from Oregon, Congressman Jim McGovern from Massachusetts, Congressman James Walkinshaw from Virginia, and Congressman Thomas Suozzi from New York) wrote a joint letter to President Trump asking that he urge Xi Jinping to release 22 US citizens detained by the CCP or family members of US citizens. Zhou Gui’s mother Wang Youmei is on the list.

He Xingqiang (first left) a pro-democracy activist from California, said he admires Falun Gong practitioners. (Minghui.org)

He Xingqiang, a pro-democracy activist from California, said when saw Falun Gong practitioners holding banners on the roadside, “I admire them a lot.”

He thought the principles of Falun Dafa, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, are wonderful. “These are core principles of being a human. I think they are great. We should promote all good things, practice cultivation, improve our character, make ourselves better, don’t harm others, and don’t do things to hurt others. What’s wrong with wanting to be a better person? The CCP says [Falun Gong] is a cult. How is it evil? This makes no sense.”

Mr. He said one of his university classmates practiced Falun Gong and was later fired from his job. For many years, he wondered how his classmate was.

The banners caught the attention of many passersby. Some people honked their horns when they drove past to express support. Several passersby stopped to ask practitioners why the event was held.

Several people who passed by the area stopped to ask practitioners about the persecution. (Minghui.org)