Local lawmakers have expressed their condemnation of a man who allegedly assaulted multiple Falun Gong practitioners during and after a Mid-Autumn Festival parade in Brooklyn. Lester Chang, New York state assemblyman for Brooklyn’s 49th District, stated that he welcomed the peaceful participation of Falun Gong members in the parade and was saddened and angered by the unprovoked assaults. Witnesses reported three additional incidents following initial reports of two women being assaulted, prompting the parade organizers to file a police report. Susan Zhuang, a member of the New York City Council for District 43, emphasized that everyone should feel safe on the streets regardless of race or religion. Iwen Chu, a New York state senator born in Taiwan, deemed the attack unacceptable and stressed that violence has no place on American streets. The assailant allegedly targeted Falun Gong practitioners participating in the parade.
Falun Gong is a spiritual practice centered around slow-moving meditative exercises and teachings based on truth, compassion, and tolerance. Hundreds of practitioners from New York participated in this particular parade held on September 14th along Eighth Avenue in Brooklyn’s Chinatown. Witnesses identified an Asian man wearing a light-colored T-shirt as the perpetrator who punched one woman before being confronted by a volunteer guard who shielded her from further harm. Minutes later, he reappeared and allegedly attacked another participant from behind until another volunteer guard intervened once again.
The witnesses claimed that they saw this same man assault other Falun Gong practitioners after the parade had ended. Some believe that these assaults were hate crimes fueled by targeted hatred instilled by China’s Communist Party (CCP), which has been persecuting Falun Gong since 1999 as part of its mission to eradicate it.
This incident marks an escalation within overseas CCP efforts to persecute and defame Falun Gong—a topic extensively covered by The Epoch Times over several years—particularly within Flushing neighborhood in Queens where pro-CCP individuals regularly harassed practitioners raising awareness about CCP persecution.
Martha Flores-Vazquez, state Assembly district leader for Flushing, highlighted how it took time to obtain protection against such harassment but stressed its necessity across other boroughs like Brooklyn due to heightened awareness regarding CCP infiltration into American institutions.
Flores-Vazquez urged individuals to report every incident so justice can be sought through documentation and public awareness.
