Here is a small trivia challenge for you. Who said, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere"? If you guessed Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. you would be correct. However, you may not have heard this next quote. Doctor King said, "He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it. He who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with it." That is a powerful wake up call. Reading it brings to mind a human rights tragedy happening right now. In China, many Falun Gong practitioners are struggling to obtain one of the most precious of all human rights. That is the freedom to believe what they choose in the space between their ears. Here is a not so trivial question. Who is withholding that right from them? If you answered, "the Chinese Communist Party", right again! With their track record of killing those who support democracy and those who support other freedoms, it wouldn't have been hard for you to guess. What is amazing about the Falun Gong practitioners is that much like Ghandi and Dr. King, they believe in the way of peaceful non-violence. These noble men and women are working towards that precious freedom without hate and without physical conflict. Many have given up their lives to do so. Between the torture and killings that are rarely reported in the world's media, the price paid so far has been extremely high. Your heart aches upon thinking of those who have endured so much torture and for those who have paid the ultimate price to obtain freedom. Yet, the struggle is not won and continues right at this moment. Admiration for those who remain firm in the face of such terror is boundless. The courage to endure when confronted with some of the extreme tortures thrust upon them is the stuff that only the greatest are made of. It makes one shudder to contemplate being forced to live in a cage that is too small to stand up and too narrow to sit down. The enormous horror of living in that situation day after day strikes at the very depth of the soul. Everyone should be fully aware of what is happening in China today. The plight of the Falun Gong practitioners is a noble one, deserving of support. Without freedom, quality of life is diminished to a shadow of what it should be. In response to their enormous suffering and equally enormous endurance, visit the Faluninfo website to more fully understand the tragedy and learn what you can do to help eliminate the continued suffering of these brave hearted men and women. Here are two more Dr. King quotes. "In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends" and "The time is always right to do what is right". The power to make a difference is in your hands. To support the just and good is a choice. And the choice you make may be remembered throughout history. A simple action to take is to call the Chinese Embassy in New York or Chicago and say three simple words, "Stop the Persecution". They will understand exactly what you mean even if they pretend not to. The New York Embassy phone number is: 212-868-7752 (US). The Chicago Chinese Embassy phone number is: 312-803-0098 (US). When the horn of freedom is sounded in times of need, men and women of the highest character heed the call.
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