(Minghui.org) I would like to share my experiences over the past few years while collaborating with police departments to introduce Falun Dafa during “National Night Out” events.
Significant CCP Infiltration Into US Municipal Governments
Six years ago, I worked for a municipal government department in a city on the US East Coast. Salaries in government jobs are lower than in the private sector—it’s similar to what the Chinese refer to as an “iron rice bowl”—you get the same pay whether you work hard or not, but you will always have the job.
As a result, some of my colleagues lacked ambition. They did whatever their supervisors told them to do, but they were somewhat numb and indifferent. Others failed to use their initiative, and rarely considered how to provide better service to the public. I was a bit surprised to see this. Through studying the Fa, I realized this was a manifestation of the communist specter within Western society.
Reflecting on my cultivation, I saw that I sometimes exhibited the same tendency: I did whatever the coordinator asked of me, without giving deeper thought to how I could further improve my cultivation or how I could clarify the truth to help Master save more people. I felt this was interference so I sent forth righteous thoughts to eliminate it. I also intensified my Fa study.
The CCP’s infiltration of the municipal government was significant and I wondered what could be done. In the autumn of 2021, I realized that it had been a long time since I had gone to the police station to clarify the truth. I consulted a coordinator, who said, “You practitioners who speak English should discuss it and go do it.”
Staff Are Reluctant to Hear the Truth
The police department holds community meetings and the public is invited to participate. I felt it would be beneficial to learn more about these meetings to help clarify the truth and introduce Falun Dafa in the future. After discussing this with other practitioners, I attended a community meeting hosted by the police department.
When I met the meeting’s chairperson, he mentioned that he knew many people from Fujian in the community and he was frequently invited to dine with them. I spoke to him about the persecution of Falun Dafa in China and he understood that human rights were not respected there. However, when I tried to elaborate further on the facts he was unwilling to listen.
Through our conversation, I gathered that he was an upright and kindhearted older man. I speculated that members of the local Fujian Association—an organization heavily infiltrated by the CCP—might have previously fed him lies slandering Dafa or exerted some form of pressure on him.
I realized that spreading the truth is not something that can be rushed; I must persevere. I told myself to stay the course.
Volunteering
The chair of the meeting appreciated my capabilities. The next day, he called to ask if I could volunteer for their meeting, so I asked what the role entailed. He explained, “Your title is Sergeant-at-Arms. That means maintaining order, presiding over the meeting, and announcing the name and title of the next speaker during the meeting.” It didn’t sound too difficult, so I agreed. Eventually I had to resign when my work schedule became too busy.
Through this volunteer work, I gained a deeper understanding of the structure and function of community meetings and became friends with some of the organizers.When I attended community-police meetings, I looked for opportunities to clarify the truth to the police officers there.
Once, after a meeting, I saw the chief of the 7th Precinct, so I went over to speak with him. I said, “Our family has lived in this neighborhood for over 30 years. Attending these meetings is very meaningful to us.” Then I told him the facts about Falun Dafa. He nodded and said, “We know about the CCP’s persecution of human rights.” Seeing the kindness in his eyes, I was glad that he already knew the truth.
On Christmas Eve, another practitioner and I went together to distribute Shen Yun desk calendars and wall calendars to the police officers at the station. I also gave them informational materials and origami lotus flowers. The other practitioner delivered English-language Epoch Times newspapers to the police station once a week.
Request Turned Down, Now What?
In the summer of 2022, I learned that the 7th Precinct holds an event called “National Night Out” every year in early August. This is a nationwide police initiative aimed at helping community members raise their safety awareness and work together with the police to combat crime.
At the event, the police department sets up booths to educate residents on how to protect themselves and avoid becoming targets for criminals. Numerous insurance companies and other organizations also set up booths to showcase their products, and even local lawmakers’ offices sometimes participate to answer residents’ questions. There are games and activities for children, and the police department provides hot dogs and water. The event consistently draws large crowds.
I asked the community event organizer if we could have a booth to introduce Falun Gong. He’d been serving the community in a voluntary capacity for over 20 years, quietly putting in a tremendous amount of work for this event every year. He was a very good person. Yet, upon hearing my request, he said, “You can apply to host your own event. Why do you want to use my event to promote your faith?”
I replied, “Before the COVID pandemic, we used to hold large-scale events in Chinatown to promote traditional culture and Falun Dafa. Since the pandemic isn’t over yet, it’s become difficult to get event permits from the parks department, so we wanted to participate in your event. Falun Dafa is effective for improving health and fitness, and it is free of charge. Many people are looking for healthy lifestyles in the wake of the pandemic, so we wanted to take this opportunity to introduce Falun Gong to the community.” However, he still refused.
Righteous Thoughts and Deeds Yield Wonderful Results
What could I do? I asked Master for support and guidance on how to overcome this obstacle. I thought I should try to see things from his perspective more often and maintain a mindset of selflessness. I learned that most of the staff for this event were community residents serving as volunteers.
So I said, “I really admire you for volunteering in the community for so many years and serving the public. We Falun Dafa practitioners also use our free time to volunteer and tell people about Falun Dafa. I’d be happy to volunteer for the police department. You’re holding an event this August—is there anything else you need help with?”
He was very glad to hear my offer and said, “We need to provide a lot of bottled water at the event site to distribute to the public. Could you help me collect some donated water from nearby businesses?” I agreed.
I contacted several supermarkets near Chinatown, including a branch of a well-known chain; I knew that such major supermarkets typically allocate a portion of their annual budget for donations to non-profit organizations. I visited the store and spoke with the manager responsible for charitable contributions, identifying myself as a police department volunteer and explaining our needs. The manager agreed to donate over 200 bottles of water.
Realizing there were limits on donation quantities, I decided to approach a few more stores. I even took the subway to visit two other branches of the same chain located further away. Ultimately, four supermarkets agreed to donate, and I secured over 1,000 bottles of water. The conference chairperson was delighted and arranged for the water to be collected. He also agreed to provide us with a booth so we could offer information about Falun Dafa.
I shared this good news with the practitioners in Chinatown and everyone was very happy. We split into groups to make preparations. The event took place along a stretch of East Broadway in the neighborhood. At our booth, some practitioners demonstrated the exercises, some distributed informational materials or lotus flowers, and others told people about the persecution. Many Chinese residents from the community came with their children and many people from other ethnic groups in the community also attended.
Many event goers accepted informational materials and lotus flowers, and thanked us for coming. This was a great opportunity for the community to learn about Dafa. Some Chinese residents previously passed by the truth-clarification site in Chinatown, but refused to take our flyers. However, during the event at the police station, they saw us, looked at us with newfound respect, and were willing to accept the materials.
One day, in the spring of 2023, the chair of the meeting said, “I’d like to ask for your help. For the meeting in May, I’d like to hold an expanded session and invite another police department to participate. Could you help me collect some food donations from Chinese restaurants? I’ll buy some pizza as well, so that everyone attending the meeting can have dinner—we’ll make it feel like a party.” I agreed.
I contacted two Chinese restaurants I was familiar with and explained the situation to them. They each provided two large platters of fried rice and stir-fried noodles. I also went to a supermarket and asked them to donate some water and soda, as well as paper towels, paper plates, and plastic forks. On the day of the event, all the food was delivered. I asked several practitioners to come to the venue to serve everyone.
The conference chair was deeply moved to see that I organized so much delicious food and thought of everything so carefully; he expressed his gratitude to me. The conference that day was a great success and a state legislator even attended and delivered a congratulatory speech. I took the opportunity to speak with the state legislator and informed him about the persecution of Falun Dafa. He told me how to contact his office assistant to bring the situation to their attention.
This event deeply inspired me. By following Master’s teachings—thinking of others and putting their needs before my own—I found that the benevolent thoughts and actions of a Dafa practitioner could yield such wonderful results. I told the chairperson, “I am a Dafa practitioner. Our teacher asks us to put others before ourselves. I see that you, too, are quietly serving the community, so I want to support you. We wish to contribute to the community.”
In July 2023, fellow practitioners involved in other online projects contacted me, saying they wanted to use the annual police-community event for outreach and hoped I could apply for a booth from the police department. I agreed. That year, practitioners in many cities across the United States participated in this event to raise awareness. Because I volunteered for the police department, they actually granted us two booths.
Group Effort and Support
For every event, a temporary stage is set up on site. At the start of the event, congressional, state, and city representatives from Chinatown arrive. They present certificates of recognition to police department personnel. These representatives didn’t stay long; on two occasions, I walked over to greet them and gave them information about Falun Dafa’s online resources.
A band that the organizers paid for performed on stage. As I looked at the stage I thought: “How wonderful it would be if practitioners could go onstage to demonstrate the Falun Dafa exercises!” I discussed this with the event chair and, prior to the August 2024 event, they agreed to give our fellow practitioners about 10 minutes to demonstrate the exercises.
I asked another practitioner to coordinate the exercise demonstration and she put a great deal of heart into the role. Noting that most practitioners in Chinatown were elderly women, she said, “We shouldn’t give the impression to the general public that only elderly women practice Falun Dafa.” She asked some younger practitioners—including Westerners to come and they wore yellow T-shirts for the demonstration.
The exercise music, broadcast through stage speakers, carried for a block or two, drawing many passersby to stop and watch. As the practitioners performed the exercises with focused concentration, the scene was both magnificent and sacred. The event was highly effective in raising awareness about Falun Dafa.
During my interactions with the conference chair and other organizers, I shared the facts about the persecution of Falun Gong, including the truth about the CCP’s transnational repression of Shen Yun Performing Arts. He said, “You should bring this matter to the attention of members of Congress.” I was very pleased that he was open to hearing the truth.
Whenever I attend meetings at the police station or speak to the person in charge to clarify the truth, I ask fellow practitioners to help send forth righteous thoughts. Ultimately, the results of these truth-clarification efforts have been quite positive. Practitioners consistently participate in online group Fa study four evenings a week. Whenever I encounter difficulties in this process, I consult with the coordinator and fellow practitioners so we can resolve any issues together.
We also participated in the event last year. In addition to introducing Falun Dafa and demonstrating the exercises, we distributed a large number of newspapers which had information about Shen Yun. After the other practitioners finished demonstrating the exercises on stage, I went onstage and spent two minutes introducing Falun Dafa to the audience in English.
Closing Remarks
I am sharing these experiences with everyone in the hope that practitioners in various communities will get involved and participate in local police-community events, allowing more people in the general public to see the beauty of Dafa and learn the truth.
I am deeply grateful for Master’s blessings and encouragement, and I also thank my fellow practitioners for their participation and support—it is because of them that our events continue to improve.
Thank you, Master! Thank you, fellow practitioners!
Category: Clarifying the Truth
