Stories from Downtown Manhattan

By a Falun Dafa practitioner from New Zealand

(Clearwisdom.net) At a popular tourist area across from the Wall Street Trade Center, Falun Dafa practitioners set up a truth clarification site on a square stage. Several colored photos exposing the persecution against Falun Gong, two banners, an exercise mat and four to five practitioners made up this unique scene at the popular sightseeing spot. There were many European and Asian tourists, including Chinese nationals and students from China, who visited the site from Christmas to January 4.

Many tourists took photos with the meditating Falun Gong practitioners after taking photos of nearby scenes around the trade center. They also photographed the two banners behind the practitioners that said: "Please help us stop this persecution" and "Falun Dafa is wonderful". We believe these tourists will explain the scenes captured in those photos to their family and friends after returning to China.

Western tourists asked about the photos displaying the various torture methods, and the Dafa disciples explained each photo to them. Almost every Chinese tourist accepted truth clarification materials, including Mainland Chinese officials. The materials written in Chinese often ran out.

A male practitioner from Taiwan arrived on December 27, 2004, and left on January 1, 2005. He didn't speak good English but did his best. He often meditated for three hours at a time, sent forth righteous thoughts, and practiced the five sets of exercises. His actions really moved us. One day, when we were about to leave Wall Street, he said to us, "My leg ached three times in the afternoon, but I got over it three times. I experienced this in Taiwan, so I could endure it."

Other stories also made a deep impression on me.

1. On January 3, 2005, a European girl, around the age of seven, came to our site. She looked over all the torture photos and decided to sign our petition to oppose the persecution. But just as she was about to sign, she seemed to remember something. She said to me, "Can I ask my parents to come over?" I said, "Yes." She then called her parents and her two older brothers to come over. The whole family expressed great sympathy to the practitioners and signed the petition.

2. After hearing about the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners, a father and daughter from Taiwan signed the petition and offered to donate money. We explained politely that we don't accept donations and thanked them for their kind thought. He said that the CCP is very cruel and that it would definitely have a bad ending.

3. A European tourist came on another day. After reading the captions of our photos that expose the torture and our banners, he gave us a thumbs-up and said, "Good! Keep it up. I support you." He first learned about the courageous Falun Gong practitioners in Ireland and carried a deep admiration for practitioners.

4. On December 27 and 28, 2004, it was extremely cold in New York City. The temperature was below -10^oC. Even the water that practitioners brought with them had frozen solid, yet every practitioner remained at the truth clarification sites. Japanese practitioners had long been in charge of the anti-torture exhibition site at 33^rd Street. Even on such cold days, they stayed outdoors for more than two hours at a time. Although their fingers and toes ached from the cold, the practitioners still stood there in an effort to awaken the kindness and the sense of justice in the hearts of New Yorkers and tourists, and offer them the chance to choose a good future for themselves.

The selfless efforts of practitioners over the last six months in Manhattan have left many touching stories.. The many accounts of practitioners' perseverance and the positive response from the general public are too many to count.

March 5, 2005

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2005/3/6/96747.html

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