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Three Hundred Million and the Rally for Freedom in China

Three Hundred Million and the Rally for Freedom in China

Last updated on: July 26, 2017 at 7:55 am by Faith J. H. McDonnell

Three Hundred Million and the Rally for Freedom in China 2017-07-26T07:55:53-05:00 Faith J. H. McDonnell

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Falun Gong practitioners rally for freedom in China at the U.S. Capitol. (Photo credit: Daniella Royer)

Three million anything is a lot. I would be very pleased to have three million dollars. Three million people is a lot of people.

If you were told that three million people had renounced the Communist Party in the past 7 years, would you be impressed? I would.

But what if I told you that almost three HUNDRED million people had renounced the Communist Party in that same amount of time? Because, although I made quite an error and announced during my recent speech at the rally for Freedom in China, sponsored by the Falun Gong, that three million people had renounced the Communist Party through the Tuidang Movement, the truth is that the number is 279,236,480.

The Falun Gong’s annual rally for freedom in China took place on Thursday, July 20, 2017 on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol. Sandwiched between U.S. Representatives Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA), Keith Rothfus (R-PA), Donald Payne (D-NJ), and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), this was my speech:

Thank you for the honor of speaking to you today. It is hard to believe that this is now the 18th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party’s merciless crackdown on Falun Gong. The Institute on Religion and Democracy continues to stand in solidarity with you in working for freedom for all of the Chinese people, and to pray that God will bless your efforts and bring freedom to China.

Hanging from the bookshelf above the computer in my office I have three beautiful lotus blossoms. From each one dangles a small banner that lists Falun Dafa’s three admirable principles: Truthfulness, Compassion, and Tolerance. I am therefore always reminded of you every day, and reminded to pray for you and for freedom in China.

But in addition to truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance, my experience with you all over the past twelve years in which I have been privileged to speak at the annual rally have made me want to suggest three more principles for Falun Gong and for all of the Chinese people who stand up against the oppression and persecution of the Chinese Communist Party.

Speaking at the Rally for Freedom in China sponsored by Falun Gong (Photo credit: Daniella Royer)

The first is COURAGE. The courage of Falun Gong practitioners, of husbands and wives who resist the forced abortion and gendercide of baby girls, of democracy advocates, of Chinese Christians, Tibetans, and Uyghurs is undeniable. As is the courage and ingenuity of those that have fought against the Great Firewall of China and provided internet freedom not only to Chinese, but to others like Iranian freedom fighters. The people of China courageously endure persecution, imprisonment, torture, and brutal death and organ harvesting in their hunger for freedom. WHERE IS THE COURAGE OF THE WEST, THE COURAGE OF THE U.S. GOVERNMENT, TO STAND IN SOLIDARITY WITH THESE FREEDOM FIGHTERS AND ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THEY ARE OUR TRUE ALLIES?

The second is RESILIENCE. There is a saying, “I survived the fire because the fire inside me burned brighter than the fire around me.” That describes the brave and good Chinese people. They have survived the fire of Communist oppression and brutality because the fire inside them, whether it be the hunger for freedom, the fire of God’s Holy Spirit, or the burning for what should be, burns brighter than the fire around them. WHERE IS OUR FIRE IN THE WEST? You have it, you that come here to show your solidarity with your suffering brothers and sisters. But where is the passion of Western nations?

Finally, the third principle that I connect to Falun Dafa and to all of the Chinese freedom fighters is INSPIRATION. The people of China — Chinese Christian pastors and laypeople suffering in prison and whose properties have been stolen or bulldozed, democracy activists arrested and tortured, people of Falun Gong, wrenched from their homes and families — are inspirational to those of us in the west who do not even realize how precious our freedom is. At a time when delusional Westerners and the corrupt media are promoting Communist and Socialist thinking, thanks to the Tuidang Movement, ALMOST THREE HUNDRED MILLION PEOPLE HAVE RENOUNCED THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY! This is incredible, and of course, it has to do with speaking the truth!

Truthfulness, Compassion, Tolerance, Courage, Resilience, and Inspiration. These are the guiding principles of Chinese freedom fighters. I am honored to stand with you today, and we at The Institute on Religion and Democracy will do everything in our power to help wake the world to this horror of organ harvesting, and the continued persecution of Falun Gong, the Christian Church, and others who long for freedom. Thank you once again for allowing me to share this anniversary with you.

May God bless you, and may God bless all the Chinese people.

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