Thousands of Burmese refugees live in City Heights, having moved to San Diego following decades of political strife and civil war in Myanmar, which was formerly known as Burma.
Since a February 1st military coup overthrew a Democratically elected government, protestors have taken to the streets in cities across Myanmar.
On Saturday in City Heights, the Burmese community, which includes a coalition of ethnic groups, will join in an international day of action, calling on the end to the killings of protestors and civilians in Myanmar. Over 600 civilians have been killed by the military since February 1.
"It’s a space where people can be together, listening to each other, not from one ethnicity, but many different ethnicities, who live here as our neighbors in City Heights,” said Nao Kabashima, the executive director of the Karen Organization of San Diego, which advocates on behalf of Burmese refugees.
She said speakers from several different ethnic minorities will talk about their experiences living under intermittent military rule, in an effort to apply pressure on the international community to put an end to the escalating repression in Myanmar.
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“No to military coup. No to military regime. No to killing ethnic people in Myanmar,” said Kabashmia. “This is not about this two month military coup, this is about more than 70 year struggle of ethnic minority groups in Burma, Myanmar and this military regime’s ethnic cleansing campaign towards these minority groups for many, many decades now.”
The rally is set for 11 a.m. Saturday, outside the City Heights Library on Fairmount Avenue.
