(Minghui.org) Nearly 2,000 Falun Gong practitioners and supporters held a rally in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC on the afternoon of July 23, 2026. They called on the international community to put an end to the persecution by the Chinese Communist Party, which has been ongoing for twenty-seven years.

A US Congressman, a think-tank expert, human rights advocates, and a former NBA star gave powerful speeches and urged US legislators to take decisive action to hold those involved in the persecution accountable.

Falun Gong practitioners and supporters rallied in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC on the afternoon of July 23, 2026. (Minghui.org)

US Congressman: “Hold Organ Traffickers Accountable”

Rep. Pat Ryan (D-N.Y.) addressed the rally in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC, on the afternoon of July 23. (Minghui.org)

House Representative Pat Ryan (D-N.Y.) gave a speech at the rally and said that he was proud to represent the global headquarters of Falun Gong at Dragon Springs, located in the Hudson Valley district. The group’s steadfast dedication to its values, arts, and history is a source of great pride and inspiration for their district. “Your adherence to the values of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance lights a beacon of hope in everyone’s heart—especially during these turbulent times,” he said.

The Falun Gong Protection Act, a legislation that he co-leads, passed the House in May 2025. “By passing this bill, we are sending a clear and unequivocal message to the CCP: their severe violations against Falun Gong will absolutely not be tolerated,” he said.

“We must continue to stand united and hold organ traffickers accountable for their heinous crimes,” said Rep. Ryan. He vowed to continue to speak out against restrictions on human rights, the persecution of religious groups, and, in particular, any threats targeting the Falun Gong community.

Former NBA Star: We Must Do Everything in Our Power to Urge Lawmakers to Take Action Against the CCP

Former NBA star and prominent international human rights activist Enes Kanter Freedom speaks at the rally. (Minghui.org)

“While we are comfortably playing basketball in this country, on the other side of the world people are losing their loved ones, losing their lives and losing their homes,” said former NBA star and prominent international human rights activist Enes Kanter Freedom at the rally.

He told Falun Gong practitioners, “We are in Washington, DC. There are lots of lawmakers in the city. I have one message to all the lawmakers that we are tired of hearing condemnations. We don’t want to hear condemnation anymore. We want you to take concrete action against Chinese Communist Party. Because while you are condemning all the atrocities happening over there, thousands of innocent people, maybe millions of innocent people, are losing their loved ones. So we’re going do whatever we can to push our lawmakers to take concrete action against those evil regimes like the CCP.

“I want to say that you have an ally, an NBA player. I know that I lost my career and lost millions of dollars, but you know what? It is nothing compared to what you are going through.”

In conclusion he stated, “My last message to all the world leaders is that if all these world leaders actually listen and follow these pure messages of Falun Dafa, you won’t have any of these wars right now. It is all about compassion, it is all about truthfulness, and it is all about standing for what is right.”

Senior Director of AFPI: I Respect That You Held Onto Your Belief Despite Torture and Persecution

Senior Director of the America First Policy Institute (AFPI) Piero Tozzi speaks at the rally. (Minghui.org)

Senior Director of the America First Policy Institute (AFPI) Piero Tozzi spoke at the rally, explaining, “What the Falun Gong has experienced both in China and increasingly in the United States and elsewhere in the world, with the long arm of the Chinese Communist Party that has followed and engaged in transnational repression, underscores that the greatest victims of the Chinese Communist Party are the Chinese people themselves.”

“The history of the CCP is written in the blood of Chinese people,” he said, adding, “The systematic suppression of the Falun Gong and the horrific torture, including organ harvesting, that the regime has inflicted upon practitioners who refused to renounce their faith shows that the notion of ‘Reform Era’ was a fantasy.

“[The CCP] totalitarian regime seeks to control the mind and what you believe in your hearts, that is why the CCP could not and cannot tolerate the Falun Gong.

“While I do not share your religious beliefs, I do respect that you held onto them despite torture and persecution, and that you refuse to conform to the dictates of an evil ideology.”

Director of Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation: The US Congress Takes Bipartisan Legislative Action

Director of Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, Karina Lipsman speaks at the rally. (Minghui.org)

Director of Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, Karina Lipsman spoke at the rally and said that “For more than 27 years, countless individuals have faced arbitrary detention, torture, imprisonment, and other grave human rights abuses because of their peaceful spiritual beliefs. Numerous governments, researchers, and human rights advocates have also raised serious concerns about the allegations of state-sanctioned forced organ harvesting from prisoners of conscience including Falun Gong practitioners, allegations that deserve continued scrutiny and accountability.

She stated that in the United States, Congress has taken meaningful steps to address these concerns. Last year, the House of Representatives unanimously passed H.R. 1540, the Falun Gong Protection Act. Most recently, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee advanced S. 4009, the Falun Gong and the Victims of Forced Organ Harvesting Protection Act. “These bipartisan legislation efforts reflect a shared commitment to confronting the credible reports of severe human rights abuses and to stand with victims of religious persecution. As these measures continue through legislative process, they represent an important opportunity for the United States to reaffirm that crimes against human dignity cannot be ignored,” she said.

Supervisory Policy Analyst of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom: Looking Forward to a Day When Falun Gong Practitioners in China Can Practice Freely

Kurt Werthmuller, Supervisory Policy Analyst of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, speaks at the rally. (Minghui.org)

Kurt Werthmuller, Supervisory Policy Analyst at the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), stated that year after year, USCIRF has unflinchingly condemned the Chinese government’s reprehensible mistreatment of Falun Gong practitioners, who have faced the worst forms of surveillance, harassment, detention, imprisonment, torture, transnational repression, and even death at the hands of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s government. In the latest Annual Report, for example, USCIRF once again recommends that the U.S. State Department re-designate China as a ‘Country of Particular Concern’ due to its systematic and ongoing violations of religious freedom, including those targeting Falun Gong practitioners.

“We look forward to a day when Falun Gong practitioners can join every community of religion or belief in China in practicing, worshiping, and believing freely, without fear, and in peace.” Werthmuller said.

Washington-Based Think Tank Experts Condemn the CCP’s Transnational Repression

Faith McDonnell, Director of Advocacy at the Institute on Religion and Democracy (IRD), formerly known as the Global Christian Church’s Katartismos, speaks at the rally. (Minghui.org)

Faith McDonnell, Director of Advocacy at the Institute on Religion and Democracy (IRD), formerly known as the Global Christian Church’s Katartismos, said that there was solid evidence indicating the CCP poses an existential threat to the United States, the Chinese people, and oppressed ethnic groups.

She said that the CCP suppresses and intimidates people beyond China’s borders. Falun Gong practitioners have long been a primary target of the CCP’s massive transnational repression. The CCP seeks to silence these practitioners who have become powerful advocates for goodness and truth through the beauty and elegance showcased by Shen Yun’s dancers, singers, and musicians by threatening them.

Rick Fisher, a Senior Fellow at International Assessment and Strategy Center, speaks at the rally (Minghui.org)

Rick Fisher, a Senior Fellow at the International Assessment and Strategy Center, told the Falun Gong practitioners at the rally the reason the CCP views them as enemies is that they represent a path to freedom of thought, a path to truth, and because they aspire to possess these things. Yet, such things are not permitted within any of its organizations or provinces, nor in any country that might fall under the control of the Chinese Communist Party in the future.

Sean Nelson, Senior Legal Counsel for Global Religious Freedom at ADF International, addressed the rally. (Minghui.org)

Sean Nelson, Senior Legal Counsel for Global Religious Freedom at ADF International told the rally that he admires how Falun Gong practitioners have consistently stood up to speak out against communist atrocities and persecution in the face of decades of ruthless oppression. By remaining united, Falun Gong practitioners have highlighted the vast chasm between religious freedom and authoritarian tyranny.

“As we celebrate the 250th anniversary of America’s founding, your struggle and testimony embody the very spirit of America. This is a place that cherishes freedom, respects religious belief that is free from state interference, and ensures that every voice has the opportunity to be heard,” Nelson said.