31st Anniversary of One-Child Policy Sparks U.S. Protests, Vigils Led By Tiananmen Square Commander-In-Chief

***Sept. 25: Anniversary of China's One-Child Policy***

Sept. 22 - Oct. 4: Chai Ling—Revolutionary, Nobel Prize Nominee, Harvard MBA—Leads Nationwide Remembrances, Testifies Before Congress and Releases Memoir Banned in China

"Chai Ling is one of the most courageous women I know ... . from her early days as a self-possessed student thrust suddenly onto the worldwide stage to her current role as a fierce defender of women and girls."  -- Cindi Leive, editor-in-chief, Glamour magazine

WASHINGTON, Sept. 19, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- "Sept. 25, 2011 marks the continuation of China's 'gendercide' 'war on girls,' " said Chai Ling, the woman who, at age 23, was the commander-in-chief of the 1989 Tiananmen Square student rebellion. On this 31st anniversary, Ling—now a U.S. citizen exiled from China—continues her fight against China's human rights atrocities by leading a U.S. protest and nationwide campaign against the One-Child Policy.

Ling and two other witnesses will testify Sept. 22 for the Congressional Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health and Human Rights to share stories of coerced abortions at the hands of the Chinese government, some 37,000 per day according to China's National Family Planning Commission.

While in Washington, Ling will participate at a Sept. 23 rally, "37 Seconds of Silence," part of a nationwide vigil organized by her advocacy group All Girls Allowed. Sept. 22- 25, more than 200 universities and churches nationwide—including Harvard, Northeastern and Notre Dame—will host 37-second vigils of silence to honor the 37 million girls* missing, through infanticide, abortion or abandonment, due to the Chinese law.

"It is this generation's responsibility to speak up, and students are beginning to see that," said Ling. "The good news is, with this kind of momentum, we believe that we can end 'gendercide' in our lifetime."

A victim of China's One-Child Policy, Ling only recently gained enough closure to share her full story in A Heart for Freedom, which reveals the truth behind her role in the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, her status as one of the most-wanted women in China, her own experience with government-forced abortion, and how she escaped to America. Banned from the very country she has long fought to save, Ling's human rights work has resulted in two nominations for a Nobel Peace Prize and recognition by Glamour magazine as "Woman of the Year."

China's One-Child Policy

The One-Child Policy, which limits Chinese families to having just one child, was established in 1980 as a response to an exploding Chinese population. Due to the Chinese preference for male children, sex-selective abortions, female infanticide and the abandonment of female children has become an integral part of Chinese culture over the last 31 years.

Groups wishing to hold a moment of silence ceremony can register at the All Girls Allowed website. A map of vigil locations is available.

Chai Ling is the founder of All Girls Allowed and founding president and chief operating officer of Jenzabar, Inc., a leading higher education software and services provider. She holds a M.B.A. from Harvard Business School, a M.L.A. in public affairs at Princeton University and a B.A. from Beijing University. Ling also established the Jenzabar Foundation, which supports inspirational humanitarian efforts of student leaders through grant opportunities. A key student leader herself in the 1989 Tiananmen Square movement, Ling was subsequently named Glamour Woman of the Year and nominated twice for the Nobel Peace Prize. Ling is author of the new book A Heart for Freedom. The hardcover memoir will release on Oct. 4, available nationwide.

All Girls Allowed aims to end gender discrimination in China through eradicating "gendercide" and assisting families who have baby girls, providing education and scholarships to abandoned girls, rescuing children from human trafficking and providing legal advocacy to mothers who have been victims of forced abortions or sterilization.

*Source: All Girls Allowed

SOURCE All Girls Allowed