Recently, there have been protests in the U. S. against the Chinese government for its human rights and Tibet issues. That's fine by us. We are willing to listen to different voices.
Unfortunately, things are turning in an ugly direction. Some demonstrations became overly exaggerated, some media coverage was seriously distorted and some organizations have even started to advocate boycotting the Beijing 2008 Olympics.
This is not acceptable. As Chinese students here, we feel deeply hurt by this situation, and it hurts even more for millions of hospitable Chinese people who have been working very hard to prepare for the games.
We do not intend to stop your protests, but we hope you can leave the Olympics alone. Studying at Notre Dame, a school with a strong sports tradition, we all understand that the Olympics, from the beginning of their history, have always been a celebrated opportunity for the whole world to set aside their differences; to take a break from the wars; to gather together with people with different backgrounds; to cheer for the victories; and to witness the realization of dreams.
The Olympics are not about politics, and should never be sacrificed for any political purpose. We are here to ask you to step away from boycotting the Olympics. Let's make the Beijing Olympics an event to bring people closer, instead of to separate people from each other.
For those who still want to boycott the Beijing Olympic, give it a second thought - Beijing's hosting of the Olympics is a move on China's part to open up its door and its mind to different people and voices. If you boycott it, you are actually closing the door from your side. It will be a pity, and not only for the Chinese people.
Yue Li
Lili Ji
graduate students
off campus
April 17
