By Kerry Huang/Ying Wang from San Jose

(Clearwisdom.net) On January 29, 2006, the annual Lunar New Year Parade of Vietnamese-Americans was held in San Jose, California. The Falun Gong practitioners' procession deeply impressed the audience. Some observers stated that the practitioners were displaying the beauty of Falun Dafa through their artistic performances.

A Vietnamese practitioner Ms. Lee Meiyan told us, "This is the sixth year that our practitioners have participated in the event, and the Falun Gong contingent is well-received. According to the tradition of Vietnam, Vietnamese are the descendants of dragons and divine beings, so we perform the dragon dance, the celestial maidens' dance and the waist drum group. We want to bring an atmosphere of health and festiveness to the parade."

Ms. Lee said that the organizer is very supportive of Falun Gong. When they applied for parade entry, the organizer said, "We were waiting for your application."

When the Falun Gong contingent was passing by the stage, the organizer said that, "Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a high-level cultivation practice of mind and body. It can also help open one's mind and wisdom." The introduction was done in both English and Vietnamese.

United States Congressman Mike Honda was part of the parade and stopped to watch the practitioners' performance. When asked to comment on the Falun Gong contingent's performances, he stated that he had known about Falun Gong and enjoyed the performance. He said, "Who wouldn't like it?" He also wanted to wish the Chinese people a happy new year.

Mr. Omar, a spectator, complimented the Falun Gong practitioners' colorful costumes and beautiful music. When he learned that Falun Gong was being persecuted in China, he was shocked. He said, "I see. You could not practice lawfully in China, so you displayed the beauty (of Falun Gong) through these artistic performances.

When asked if he knew of the contingent in front of him, a Vietnamese spectator named Viet said, "That's Falun Gong, right?" He said, "I support them. I support the downfall of the Chinese Communist Party, and I hope that Communist in Vietnam will fall. I like Falun Gong very much, and I should take part in it. I wish you a Happy New Year!"

Linda, the organizer of the parade, told a reporter, "Our celebration of the New Year is to help the younger generation remember Vietnamese traditions. More and more groups have participated in it each year." When talking about the Falun Gong contingent, she said, "Falun Gong comes to the parade every year. The group is very beautiful, especially the ribbon dance, the dragon dance and the waist drum performance. We are so pleased to have so many community entries participating."

Ms. Dolores Carr, a judge of the parade, said, "In San Jose, we welcome all groups to the parade, welcome the diversification of the community, and our community is a whole body." She expressed that the practitioners' dances are very elegant.

Posting date: 2/3/2006
Original article date: 2/3/2006
Category: Falun Dafa Worldwide
Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2006/1/30/119786.html

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