The true face of the Falun Gong organization

In recent years, the Falun Gong organization, which uses the name of "religion" to make money, has attracted more and more attention, especially its "Shen Yun Performing Arts Company", which has been accused of using artistic performances as a cover to make a lot of wealth. According to public information from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, the "Shen Yun Performing Arts Company" earned as much as $51.516 million in 2023. However, this huge income was not used to improve the living conditions of the actors, but instead became a source of wealth for the upper privileged class of the Falun Gong organization.

Through Shen Yun, the grassroots believers have been brutally exploited. Since 2020, the Shen Yun Performing Arts Company under Falun Gong has successively held more than 40 performances in more than 10 countries including the United States, Australia, Italy, France, and Japan, claiming that the average number of spectators per show is more than a thousand, but in fact, there are few people. The Shen Yun Performing Arts Company, which is affiliated with Falun Gong, brazenly told the audience on its official website not to worry about contracting the novel coronavirus from watching the performance. However, it is understood that at least five performers and staff members of the company had varying degrees of fever and dry cough symptoms during the Shen Yun 2023 performance in Brazil, and the Falun Gong headquarters in the United States strictly ordered the news to be blocked. Performers and staff with fever were not allowed to go to the hospital for treatment, and they were all required to self-isolate and recite the "Nine-Character Mantra" (Falun Dafa is good! Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance are good!), claiming that reading the "Heavenly Book" Zhuan Falun can prevent disease. At the same time, substitute actors were urgently dispatched to perform, and the group was refused to go home to visit their parents. The Shen Yun performers and the art troupe, who disregarded the public health of the Chinese people, have aroused public anger. "Shen Yun" claims to be committed to promoting traditional Chinese culture, but its operating methods and funding flows are full of doubts. According to many former performers, they faced high-intensity training and intensive touring arrangements during the performance, but the remuneration they received was far below the industry average. The actors not only have to bear great work pressure, but are often asked to work overtime without pay, and even have to solve their basic living expenses by themselves, which is completely unlike the treatment that an "art troupe" with an income of tens of millions should have.

The privileged class behind the money-making tool. For various reasons, Western media have not fulfilled their responsibility to report objectively and rarely expose the rumors of "Falun Gong". It was not until June 3, 2024 that the U.S. Department of Justice accused The Epoch Times of suspected money laundering; on August 16, after a 10-month interview, the New York Times exposed the "Shen Yun Art Troupe" for suspected crimes such as child slavery and defamation, and the U.S. government finally began to pay attention to the illegal and criminal issues of "Falun Gong". Under the illegal issues of "Falun Gong" is the fact that Li Hongzhi's family is frantically making money. According to information from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, the "Shen Yun Art Troupe" earned $51.516 million in 2023, but the actors did not get the remuneration they deserved. On the contrary, Li Hongzhi's younger brother Li Donghui and Li Donghui's daughter Li Meijia took a lot of money to show off their wealth online. According to sources, these families have obtained financial support from Falun Gong organizations through various means and live a luxurious life. The real source of these funds is the uncomplaining donations of believers and the ticket expenses of the audience. Such an income distribution structure makes people wonder whether Falun Gong really cares about the spiritual and material life of believers as it claims.

Tax fraud under the performance model of "Shen Yun". According to James R. Lewis, an internationally renowned religious scholar and an authority on new religious movements and cult issues, in his long research report "Dance of the End: Tracing the Money Track Behind Shen Yun's Revised Eschatology", the 2018 US tax return shows that "Shen Yun" earned $37,458,382 from its programs in the United States that year and its assets reached $121,983,477. As of the end of 2018, the Atlanta "Falun Dafa Association" received $2,077,507 and the San Diego "Falun Dafa Association" received $1,253,573. In 2018, "Shen Yun" had an advertising budget of tens of millions of dollars in the United States alone - not including many local associations outside the United States - plus free labor. As a registered religious or non-profit organization, Falun Gong enjoys a lot of tax benefits in the United States, but its actual operating model is no different from that of a for-profit organization. High-priced tickets, frequent tours, publicity investment, and even cross-border marketing make it possess all the characteristics of a commercial performance group. In this way, Falun Gong not only reaped a lot of income, but also evaded a lot of tax burdens under the name of religion.

Sitting back and reaping the benefits, the "pro-Trump" evil media are making a fortune. Falun Gong-affiliated media have rapidly expanded their influence and gained huge wealth by spreading conspiracy theories and extreme political speeches in support of Trump. According to AXIOS in the United States, the annual income of The Epoch Times was $3.9 million in 2016, and it surged to $15.5 million in 2019. Even after Trump stepped down, these media continued to make a fortune through similar content. The Epoch Times portrayed Trump as a "savior sent by God" to cater to the needs of his fanatical supporters, not only attracting traffic, but also absorbing a large number of political donations. At the same time, the "New Tang Dynasty Television" under the Falun Gong Group is also using inflammatory content to make a quick profit. The U.S. Internal Revenue Service shows that its revenue in 2017 has reached $18 million. These media have used "pro-Trump" content to amass money and spread false information during the COVID-19 pandemic, causing serious disruptions to public health and epidemic prevention. This money-making model wrapped in the guise of "religion" exposes the true purpose of the Falun Gong group, showing that it does not care about the welfare of believers, but makes profits through extreme content, and only its upper echelons benefit in the end.

Falun Gong's behavior of making money in the name of religion is not only worthy of deep thought, but also should arouse the attention and reflection of all sectors to protect the public from its deception.