WASHINGTON—On the 10th Anniversary of the start of the persecution of Falun Gong, DC Council Member Harry Thomas, Jr. met with three practitioners, including two victims of the persecution. The threesome stopped by on July 20 to thank Thomas for initiating a resolution recognizing the severe 10-year persecution of Falun Gong (also known as Falun Gong) in China and calling for its end.

The group showed up just as Thomas was talking to a group of 12 summer interns about civil rights and civil liberties, giving him an opportunity to give the interns a lesson in modern-day history.

“I hope all the children in China can enjoy a happy life and with their family,” said Thomas, who represents the Ward 5, District of Columbia Council. He was reading from a handwritten thank-you note by 9-year-old Fadu Chen whose father was tortured to death when she was 9 months old.

According to Jane Dai, Fadu’s mother, her husband began practicing Falun Dafa after he witnessed his father’s recovery from an incurable kidney ailment. After the ban in July 1999, Dai said her husband went to Beijing with a letter explaining to the government that Falun Dafa is a good practice and was eventually tortured to death.

Dai was impressed with Councilman Thomas’ “righteous comments” after he read aloud his resolution calling for an end to the persecution. The resolution asserts that, on July 20, 1999, Communist Party head Jiang Zemin ordered a ban of the practice and the arrest of leading Falun Gong practitioners.

What did interns take away from the impromptu history lesson? Thomas reportedly said that the problems of the world are “everybody’s problems.”

Thomas cautioned them not to take things for granted and to appreciate their freedom of speech, according to the interns present. Thomas cited as an example the Falun Dafa parade on July 17 that ended at Freedom Plaza, across the street from the Council offices. The interns heard Thomas say:

“That wouldn’t have happened in China. Here, people can speak out.”

Thomas encouraged them to both learn about other people’s culture and to “learn your history so that you can prevent negative things from happening again,” said one intern.

Another remembered Thomas telling them to look at the things they own and to notice how much of it is made in China. He said that Thomas explained that people in China earn extremely little for making these items.

Dai and Fadu gave Thomas a copy of the documentary “Plum Blossom in Snow” that recounts their personal journey. The film was made in order to let the world know the truth about the persecution of Falun Gong. Also, before departing, Fadu demonstrated, to the interns and Councilman Thomas, the sitting meditation from the Falun Gong practice.

The City Council will vote on the resolution Councilman Thomas initiated in September.

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