After attacks on the Olympic Torch in London and Paris, Tibetan separatist groups from all over the world came to San Francisco in an attempt to whip up anti-China sentiment in front of a world audience.
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In an anti-China, anti-communist rally held the night before the torch was to arrive, South African bishop Desmond Tutu called on world leaders to boycott the Beijing Olympics. Fewer than 1,000 people attended the U.N. Plaza rally, yet the corporate media provided enormous coverage. Inflated crowd numbers and carefully selected shots falsely magnified the event.
Members of the Party for Socialism and Liberation unfurled a banner that read “Say No to the U.S.-CIA Campaign Against China.” and distributed a statement on the role of U.S. imperialism in the “Free Tibet” movement.
While encountering some expected hostility, PSL members where able to reach individuals who supported the Olympics and were open to discussion on Tibet. PSL members discussed the fact that Tibet has been part of China for centuries and, should Washington wrench Tibet from China, it would become a pro-imperialist colony with U.S. military bases within striking distance from the rest of China.
Actor Richard Gere and multimillionaire war profiteer Richard Blum spoke at the rally, glorifying the Dalai Lama as a “simple man of peace.” The PSL literature countered this myth, explaining that the Dalai Lama has been on the CIA payroll since fleeing Tibet in 1959. Before then, he and his army maintained a feudal system that kept serfs in abject poverty. Education and health care were virtually non-existent for the vast majority of Tibetans who worked the land. Life expectancy was 35 years.
Early the next day, thousands of supporters of China and the Olympic games started to line the streets, many waving the red flags of the People’s Republic of China. The Olympic torch was to proceed along the wide Embarcadero so that thousands of people could attend the historic event.
Also attending in large numbers were well-organized anti-China groups, launching outlandish attacks ranging from so-called animal rights abuses to Darfur and Burma. Especially notable among them were the anti-communist “Free Tibet” forces. It was clear that Tibetans living in the United States and their support groups were well-financed and had mobilized in hopes of disrupting the passing of the torch.
As time went by, these groups became more aggressive and took over parts of the street where the torch was to pass. Television coverage showed them pounding on and spray painting buses that were bringing in people to see the event.
Even the large police presence could not have guaranteed that the torch could pass without being disrupted by anti-China agitators. The city was thus forced to come up with an alternate route in the opposite direction from the Embarcadero in order to thwart the provocateurs’ plans.
PSL members passed out literature and held a banner and placards calling for an end to the attacks on China. They gathered from numerous conversations that spectators were tremendously disappointed that they were not able to see the torch.
Throughout the day, Chinese families, young and old, were confronted by white liberals about “oppression” in Tibet. Members of the Chinese community explained how proud they were that the Olympics were being held in Beijing, which they considered a fitting honor given the progress achieved in China—including Tibet—in the last 50 years.
Many U.S. and Chinese television networks and newspapers featured the PSL’s position, including the Washington Post and the New York Sun. The PSL intervention was warmly received by the Chinese community, who were glad to find a group that not only could see through the “Free Tibet” smear campaign against China, but was also willing to take a stand against the imperialist propaganda.
