Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to the United States was met by sustained protests from Tibetans, Uyghurs and other groups in Washington, with demonstrators using the high profile summit to press human rights concerns as Xi met President Donald Trump.
Xi arrived in Washington on September 23 for a state visit running through September 25, with talks focused heavily on trade, artificial intelligence and broader US China relations. While Trump personally welcomed Xi at Joint Base Andrews, protesters had already begun positioning themselves along the Chinese leader’s expected motorcade route.
Tibetan activists unfurled banners along the route to Xi’s hotel declaring “Free Tibet,” “China Out of Tibet” and “You Are Not Welcome in the USA.” Groups involved in the demonstrations included the Tibetan Youth Congress, Students for a Free Tibet and the International Tibet Network. Reports from the scene described pro Beijing demonstrators carrying large Chinese flags nearby, with police separating opposing groups at several locations.
The demonstrations expanded dramatically on September 24. Tibetans gathered outside the Chinese Embassy in Washington before marching through the capital toward the National Mall, Capitol area and White House. Reuters photographs documented large groups of protesters carrying Tibetan flags outside the embassy and later moving through Chinatown and the National Mall.
Organizers told The Diplomat that more than 3,000 Tibetans participated during the day, describing it as the largest Tibetan demonstration held in North America. That figure is an organizer estimate rather than an independently verified crowd count. Other reporting placed individual gatherings at lower numbers, reflecting the fact that protesters moved between several locations during the day.
Tibetan protesters sought to draw attention to issues including political and religious prisoners, restrictions on Tibetan language and culture, Chinese government involvement in Tibetan Buddhist reincarnation, the disappearance of the 11th Panchen Lama and Beijing’s new Ethnic Unity and Progress Promotion Law. Tibetan advocacy groups argue that the law, which took effect in July, will deepen policies aimed at integrating ethnic minorities into a common Chinese national identity. Beijing presents such policies as promoting national unity and social stability.
Uyghur organizations joined the demonstrations alongside Tibetans, Hong Kong activists, Southern Mongolians and Chinese democracy campaigners. Participating Uyghur groups included the Uyghur American Association, Uyghur Human Rights Project and Uyghur Movement. Demonstrators near the White House chanted slogans including “Xi Jinping, stop the Uyghur genocide” and “Get out of East Turkistan,” using the name many Uyghur activists prefer for the region officially called Xinjiang by China.
Uyghur activists called on Trump to raise Beijing’s treatment of Uyghurs directly with Xi and to push for the release of political prisoners. Haider Jan of the East Turkistan National Movement told demonstrators that diplomatic relations should not come at the expense of the rights of Uyghurs and other communities under Chinese rule.
By Thursday evening, protesters had gathered along Lafayette Park within earshot of the White House as Xi attended official events. Associated Press reporters described protests continuing almost nonstop during the visit, with demonstrators waving Tibetan and other flags while chanting against Xi. Pro China supporters also assembled in Washington, creating competing demonstrations around the tightly secured diplomatic visit.
The protests brought together movements with different political goals but a shared demand that human rights not disappear from the US China agenda. Tibetans emphasized cultural and religious restrictions and Tibet’s political status, while Uyghur groups focused heavily on mass detention, repression and Beijing’s policies in Xinjiang.
Their presence also created a striking contrast with the diplomacy taking place inside the White House. While Washington and Beijing discussed trade, artificial intelligence and strategic stability, Tibetan and Uyghur protesters were attempting to ensure another set of issues remained visible outside the gates.
For the diaspora communities involved, Xi’s visit was therefore more than a diplomatic event. It became an opportunity to place Tibet, Uyghur rights and political prisoners before an international audience at precisely the moment when the US and Chinese governments were seeking a more stable relationship.
