Toronto: Celebrating Canada Day, Falun Dafa Takes Root in Local Community

July 1, 2005 marked the 138th anniversary of the formation of the union of the British North America provinces in a federation under the name of Canada. Numerous activities were held in Toronto to celebrate Canada Day. The Falun Dafa Association of Toronto was also invited to take part in two grand parades in East York and Scarborough, respectively. Their performances were warmly received.

Falun Dafa practitioners' procession	Waist-drum troupe

Falun Dafa practitioners' procession included a Tang Dynasty drum troupe, a Falun Gong exercise demonstration troupe, a traditional Chinese dance team, and a waist-drum troupe. The practitioners exhibited graceful and unique traditional Chinese performances and showcased the sense of beauty experienced through living according to Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance.

Local government officials including Janel Pavis and Case Ootes attended the parade and cheered and applauded the Falun Gong practitioners. They cheered along with the spectators, calling out, "Falun Dafa is good!"

East York is a community where many Chinese people reside. A Western practitioner said with emotion, "I feel so happy to see so many Chinese people here smile at the practitioners and watch their performances. When we came here to join the parade several years ago, because of the Chinese Communist regime's hate propaganda, those people looked at us with anger or were afraid of communicating with us. Through our persistent explanation over the past more than five years, more and more people have realised who we are, and the severe persecution against Falun Gong."

A western woman said, "Their (Falun Gong practitioners') performance is so wonderful! It is really ridiculous that the Chinese Communist Party persecutes Falun Gong." She signed a postcard calling for the rescue of children orphaned in the persecution of Falun Gong.

There is an even higher ratio of Chinese residents in Scarborough. A practitioner who was in charge of filing the application to participate in the parade said that she missed the deadline for the application. However, the parade organiser phoned her and asked, "Your performance is unique and has been quite warmly received. Why don't you apply to take part this year?"

This practitioner told a story about how she got to the parade venue. She asked two police officers for directions. One officer saw her shirt with the words, "Falun Gong" and asked, "What is Falun Gong?" The other officer came over and patted his shoulder, saying, "Aren't you aware of Falun Gong?" Then he explained to the first officer what Falun Gong was. However, the first officer was not satisfied and asked the practitioner for more information. She then gave him a deeper introduction to Falun Gong and the persecution in China. He immediately requested to sign the petition in support of the efforts against the persecution.

Young practitioners from the Minghui School were dressed in bright-coloured costumes and performed dances. Their graceful performance is always warmly received. They also went to several local communities to perform for the residents, and their performances were highly praised.