A flag-raising ceremony was held beside New York City's iconic Charging Bull in Wall Street, to celebrate the 61st anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, on Sept. 29, 2010.

A Chinese national flag was raised Wednesday in New York's financial district, beside the world-famous Charging Bull in Wall Street, to celebrate the 61st anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

The flag-raising ceremony, hosted by the Sino-American Friendship Association (SAFA), was attended by US and Chinese officials, business executives, community leaders and students from all backgrounds, aiming at celebrating the friendship and promoting communications and mutual understandings between the two countries.

    

"We hope the US-China friendship will grow as the meaning of the Charging Bull, optimism and prosperity," Peter Zhang, president of the SAFA, said at the ceremony.

Holding China's national flag in hands, Dr. Michael Szenberg, co-chair of SAFA and editor-in-chief of the American Economist, told Xinhua that this ceremony demonstrated the solidarity between Chinese and American people.

"With more and more Chinese coming to the United States, people from both countries can understand each other better," he said.

The event special sponsor representative of No-Jet-Lag, Neil Epstein (middle) took photos with the council members of SAFA at the event

  

Li Li, the executive vice-president of SAFA and the president of Sino-American Culture & Arts Foundation hosted the flag-raising ceremony with Patrick Harvey, the advisor of Sino-American Friendship Association. Ms. Li awarded the certificate of appreciation to the Tottenville High School to recognize their hard work in promoting the friendship between U.S. and China

After the ceremony, the executives and members of SAFA, the event guests and the China delegation took group photo during the luncheon at the Downtown Association.

David LaMorte, assistant principle of the New York Tottenville High School, whose marching band played China's national anthem during the ceremony, said their 110 students got a wonderful chance to know more about China and Chinese culture while practicing China's national anthem.