[vincesanity82]

The New Year's Day Tournament of Roses Parade included a float promoting the 2008 Olympics. Some years, such a float wouldn't be controversial. But this year the Olympics are in China, a country that, we should not forget, is:

a one-party state that does not hold national elections, has no independent judiciary, leads the world in executions, aggressively censors the Internet, bans independent trade unions, and represses minorities such as Tibetans, Uighurs, and Mongolians.

Because of that human rights record, some protesters attended the Tournament of Roses Parade and threatened to block that Olympic-themed float. The Los Angeles Times reports on the protesters' case:

Human rights activists said the Beijing Olympics float, co-sponsored by the People's Republic of China, was a propaganda tool for a government that sanctions imprisonment and torture of its opponents.

"I went around reminding people they are American and not to forget what you stand for," said protester Kai Chen, 54, of Los Angeles, passing out T-shirts equating the Olympics to the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989.

As Olympics Approach, Protesters Decry China on Human Rights; Do Americans Care? - FanHouse - AOL Sports Blog

[Gotham Dark Knight]

Originally Posted by vincesanity82

Human rights activists said the Beijing Olympics float, co-sponsored by the People's Republic of China, was a propaganda tool for a government that sanctions imprisonment and torture of its opponents.

Did anyone protest our games in LA in say 1932 when...well...we had blacks pretty much being second class citizens???

Politics should stay out of the Games...though it seems to be lightning rod for it instead.