ABSTRACT
The government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has managed to stay in the international spotlight for several years with its ongoing suppression of the qigong-based spiritual group Falun Gong (also called Falun Dafa). In its attempts to justify its behavior to an outraged West, China has relied primarily on finger pointing, claiming that many other nations, including the United States, regularly engage in similar practices of repression and control. In both official and quasi-official PRC websites, sources associated with the American anticult movement are cited with approval and used to demonstrate that Falun Gong is a “cult.” These sites further imply that “cults” are evil and regularly prosecuted in the U.S. 1
