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Movie & Discussion Night for Ai Weiwei and China’s Human Rights
Cost: No Cost
Movie & Discussion Night for Ai Weiwei and China’s Human Rights
What: Movie and Discussion Night for Ai Weiwei and China’s Human Rights
When: Thursday, January 24th, 2013
Time: 6:30 to 8:30 PM
Where: Thomas Merton Center, 5129 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15224
On Thursday, January 24th, Mr. Nima, a Chinese activist in Pittsburgh will play a select mix of documentaries and discuss with the audience about China’s human rights violations, its inevitable transformation and how this relates to America.
China’s unrelenting crack down on civil society efforts has been persecuting countless innocent citizens and dissidents, including Ai Weiwei (“China’s most dangerous man” labled by Smithsonian magazine) and Liu Xiaobo, the only Noble Prize Winner who was sentenced to jail for 11 years. The former is so good at mobilizing grassroots actions using his artistic charisma; the latter is well-known for promoting sweeping political reform from the top-down.
Showcasing his “victim paperboard” and other secretly-shot videos, the Chinese activist will uncover the stress of Liu Xia, Liu Xiaobo’s wife who has been under house arrest for two years, as well as the legendary “Tank Man” during the 1989 Tiananmen Massacre -- China’s latest massive pro-democracy movement.
“Almost 24 years after the Massacre, does the communist regime get any better cheating and abusing its people? No. When it consistently refuses to give out a roadmap for democratic reform, everyone, in and out of the corruptive system, is questioning the regime’s ability, sincerity and the legitimacy to rule one-fifth of the world’s population,” said Mr. Nima. “How can China become a responsible leader when it treats its own people this way?”
“Inside of China, the regime keeps distracting its people ‘just make money, don’t care
about politics’. Internationally, it claims against the world that ‘universal values mean nothing to me.’ This hooligan tactic, unfortunately, weakens civil disobedience and pressure from major democracies,” explained Mr. Nima. “No matter what, many expect the United States, the de facto human rights defender, to speak louder and push harder for China’s democratization.”
“The Thomas Merton Center feels proud to provide an opportunity to have Mr. Nima’s voice heard. For 40 years, we have been in solidarity with civil rights activists and standing with those voiceless,” said Diane McMahon, managing director of the Center.
“We admire Mr. Nima’s courage in exploring every opportunity to speak up for justice. When most of his Chinese peers remain silent, he steps up and takes action. We support him not only because of his identity, which is a rare Chinese Catholic, but because of his genuineness and altruism,” added both the Center’s board members Michael Drohan, who taught in China as a professor, and his wife Joyce Rothermel, the retired CEO of Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank.
Mr. Nima’s story and thoughts will appear on the Center’s publication THE NEW PEOPLE from January through March 2013. He can be reached at usacnm@gmail.com.
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