NY's Empire State Building chided for honoring China [ESB is home to org Human Rights Watch!]

Reuters via Yahoo News ^ | October 1, 2009 | Claudia Parsons

[ETL]

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Human rights activists slammed managers of New York's Empire State Building on Thursday for illuminating the skyscraper in red and yellow for China's 60th anniversary, saying the move honored a communist entity responsible for human rights violations.

The government in Beijing celebrated the 60th anniversary of the birth of the People's Republic of China on Thursday with a high-tech parade featuring goose-stepping troops, gaudy floats and nuclear-capable missiles.

Managers of the Empire State Building, New York's tallest skyscraper, said in a statement the illumination was "in honor of the 1.3 billion Chinese people and the 60th anniversary of their country," adding that it celebrates "many cultures and causes" throughout the year.

Human Rights Watch, an international rights watchdog that has offices in the Empire State Building, said it had written a letter of complaint to building managers expressing "surprise and dismay" at the decision.

"We have no objection to honoring China as a nation, a great civilization or a vibrant people," HRW Associate Director Carroll Bogert wrote in the letter that was released publicly.

"However, this date commemorates the rule of the Chinese Communist Party, a political entity that is responsible historically for many grave violations of human rights."

[ETL]

"Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City [INSIDE THE EMPIRE STATE BUILDING]..."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_Rights_Watch
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Empire State Building
350 Fifth Avenue
Manhattan, New York
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empire_state_building
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Human Rights Watch
350 Fifth Avenue, 34th Floor
New York, NY 10118-3299
USA
Tel: 1-(212) 290-4700
http://www.hrw.org/
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Incredible video of the lighting ceremony from YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Shg2fqIPbYE

[ETL]

Amazingly, both the Huffington Post and the New York Times ran respectable pieces on this story.

From the leftist NY Times...

“Officially, it was described as commemorating the 60th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China. Looked at another way, it honored the 60th anniversary of Communist rule, which in the past caused millions of deaths and whose standard-bearers are serial human rights offenders. In its most recent report on human rights around the world, covering 2008, the State Department said that China’s record “remained poor and worsened in some areas.” Extrajudicial killings, torture, repression of ethnic minorities and imprisonment of dissidents were but a few of the abuses cited.”

Bright Lights That Mask the Darkness:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/02/nyregion/02nyc.html?ref=nyregion
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From the leftist Huffington Post.

To celebrate the 60th anniversary of the People's Republic of China under Communist rule and Mao's 1949 revolution, the Chinese will hold a military parade in Beijing on Thursday of unparalleled size -- 5,000 soldiers, 43,000 fireworks and a display of 52 new weapons -- followed by a civilian parade of 100,000 marchers and 60 floats, many chanting new nationalistic mantras coined by the Chinese government for the occasion.

For a nation that worships Mao, and the path of development and prosperity the Chinese people believe he charted, nothing less would do to commemorate its 60th anniversary.

But when it comes to the commemoration of China's 60th anniversary in the U.S., perhaps we could -- and should -- expect a little less.

Wednesday night in New York City, the Empire State Building will illumine its familiar spire with red and yellow lights in honor of Communist China. The Communism-themed color scheme will stay lit through Thursday night, much to the delight of China's consular officials, who were on hand for a ceremony in the lobby of the iconic building Wednesday morning, and to the acute dismay of the dozen or so protesters outside, and to many Americans who question whether honoring China's Communist revolution here is at all appropriate.

Mao Takes Manhattan: Empire State Building Goes Red and Yellow for China:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-flumenbaum/empire-state-building-goe_b_305122.html
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Empire State Building Goes Red for Communist China, Sparking Protest
September 30, 2009

Sept. 30: The Empire State Building lit in red and yellow to honor the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

NEW YORK — New York is seeing red over the decision to turn the city's highest beacon — and one of America's symbols for free enterprise — into a shining monument honoring China's communist revolution Wednesday night.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,557823,00.html?mep
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Mao Tse-Tung

AKA Chairman Mao, AKA 'The Great Helmsman'. (Tse-Tung can also be spelt Zedong. Translated the name means 'To Shine on the East'.)

Country: China

Kill tally: 14 to 20 million deaths from starvation during the 'Great Leap Forward'. Tens of thousands killed and millions of lives ruined during the 'Cultural Revolution'.

http://www.moreorless.au.com/killers/mao.html

[newfreep]

Don’t forget the ChiCom flag was raised by the white house.

[reagan_fanatic]

Managers of the Empire State Building, New York's tallest skyscraper, said in a statement the illumination was "in honor of the 1.3 billion Chinese people and the 60th anniversary of their country," adding that it celebrates "many cultures and causes" throughout the year.

Whatever happened to principles and love of country?

[ontap]

Disgusting!!!

[WOBBLY BOB]

Maybe they were bribed...don’t the Chinese basically own us now anyway?

[Politicalmom]

When will they be honoring those killed at Tiananmen Square?

[silverleaf]

Wow, Cher is older than communism in China!

(One of Letterman’s few good lines)

[uncommonsense]

Mao is responsible for about 30 million deaths including his famine: http://users.erols.com/mwhite28/tyrants.htm

[uncommonsense]

Actually, make that 40 million deaths.