Cities across the Grand Canyon State are joining a global wave of officials marking more than 30 years since the public introduction of Falun Dafa.
World Falun Dafa Day honors both the birthday of the practice’s founder, Li Hongzhi, and the practice’s global impact on health and morality. The day also highlights practitioners’ efforts to defend their freedom of belief amid ongoing persecution by the Chinese communist regime.
To mark the celebration, the mayors of five Arizona cities—Phoenix, Chandler, Glendale, Prescott Valley, and Casa Grande—issued proclamations recognizing May 13, 2025, as Falun Dafa Day in their cities.
Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego issued a proclamation ahead of the global celebrations, recognizing the values of Falun Dafa.
“[I] encourage residents to reflect on the universal principles of Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance and honor the contributions of those who strive to bring peace, Health and harmony to our communities,” Gallego said in her proclamation.
Phoenix has recognized the occasion since 2021.
The three principles—truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance—are the core moral beliefs behind the teachings of Falun Dafa, also known as Falun Gong, a spiritual practice introduced to the Chinese public in 1992. In just a few years, the practice’s popularity grew exponentially, reaching at least 70 million by 1999, according to official estimates.
The practice was introduced to Arizona in 1998.
Mayor Kevin Hartke of Chandler has been issuing a proclamation to recognize May 13 as Falun Dafa Day for several years since assuming office in 2019. Hartke declared the celebration in 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2025.
Hartke acknowledged the diversity displayed among Falun Gong practitioners, saying the practice “transcends cultural, social, and national boundaries.”
As stated in the proclamation, meditation exercises and teachings of the practice have been offered to the public by volunteers for free around the world, spreading to tens of millions of people in over 100 countries.
Glendale Mayor Jerry Weiers, who has been supportive of the practice since assuming office in 2013, also acknowledged the health benefits that it brings to the community through free workshops in local libraries and parks.
Weiers also shed light on the Chinese communist regime’s brutal persecution of Falun Gong since 1999.
“Falun Dafa practitioners’ determination and courage to stand up for Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance while facing severe persecution from the Chinese Communist Party has shown the world the value of life and the preciousness of human dignity,” Weiers’s proclamation reads.
Joining the three cities in the celebration this year are Prescott Valley and Casa Grande, located in the northern and southern parts of the state, respectively.
Like his southern colleagues, Prescott Valley Mayor Kell Palguta also commemorated the benefits that Falun Gong brought to the community with its peaceful principles and exercises, while praising practitioners for bearing the years-long persecution with great fortitude.
Casa Grande’s newly elected mayor, Lisa N. Fitzgibbons, likewise declared May 13 as Falun Dafa Day prior to the celebration in April.
Fitzgibbons’ predecessor, former Mayor Craig H. McFarland, did the same for the 25th World Falun Dafa Day in 2024.
