WASHINGTON, D.C.—The Global Human Rights Torch Relay was announced at a news conference outside the Cannon House Office Building in Washington, D.C. on August 3. Just as in every Olympics a route is chosen for the torchbearers announcing the Olympic Games, the "Run for Human Dignity" will call attention to the Beijing Olympic Games and the much criticized human rights record of the host country.
The Human Rights Torch Relay (HRTR) begins in Athens Greece, August 9th, a year before the start of the Beijing Olympics. Then in a ceremony, HRTR will light its first flame. This torch acts as a symbol of the protection of human rights and respect of human life. The HRTR will end in Asia; the exact location is still being determined.
The torch will pass through five continents, and more than 20 countries and 100 cities. The message HRTR wants to convey is: "Beijing Olympics and crimes against humanity cannot co-exist." The HRTR is initiated by prominent members of the Coalition to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong (CIPFG).
Congressman Thaddeus McCotter spoke at the gathering on the Cannon Terrace and made clear his disapproval of China's communist regime. Rep McCotter spoke of every American as "a child of the American Revolution," who inherited the "legacy of liberty," and as such, it was the responsibility and duty of free Americans to stand with those who yearn to be free. He said that he would be joining Congressman Dana Rohrabacher in a bill asking for a boycott of the Beijing Olympics in Beijing "until that tyrannical communist regime begins to recognize and respect the … God-given rights of their own citizens.".
Strange that the mainstream media hasn't been talking about it. As far as I've noticed, anyway. Clearly it isn't a top story in the MSM. Why?
