Source: Chinese Consulate General in New York

On the afternoon of October 19, Huang Ping, Consul General of the Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in New York, went to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to visit William Bodine High School of International Affairs, where she met with school leaders, gathered with representatives of teachers and students, delivered a passionate speech, interacted with students, answered their questions and presented the school with books about Chinese history and culture on behalf of the Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in New York. Mr. Qian Jin, Vice Consul General of the school, Mr. Mitchell, President of the school, Mr. Tousman, Vice President of the school, Mr. Hutchinson, Vice President of Education of World Affairs Council of Philadelphia, Mr. Werner, Director of Education of World Affairs Council of Philadelphia, Mr. Zhang Wenlong, President of the U.S.-China Business and Tourism Association, Ms. Gloria Li, Secretary General of U.S.-China Business and Tourism Association, and more than a hundred representatives of the students and teachers from the school participated in the activities.

The school auditorium was crowded with people, full of youthful vigor. Consul General Huang Ping from the Consulate General's duties and China's basic national conditions, from shallow to deep, step by step, focusing on how to look at China, how to look at the U.S.-China relationship, how to make the U.S.-China relationship better three topics, with more than 100 students and teachers to share their journey. Huang Ping said, China is a vast, linguistically diverse, culturally diverse, ancient civilization with a long history, and its civilization lineage stretches for more than 5,000 years and continues uninterrupted. Over the past hundred years, the Communist Party of China (CPC) has united and led the Chinese people to strive for continuous self-improvement, which has enabled China to rise to the world's second largest economy and completely get rid of absolute poverty. Whether it's the construction of infrastructure such as high-speed rail and highways, or the intelligent way of life such as mobile payment and the sharing economy, all of them show that China's modernization is progressing at a fast and steady pace.

Consul General Huang Ping pointed out that China and the United States should be partners, not rivals or enemies, and should cooperate, not confront or conflict. In the more than 50 years since the normalization of China-U.S. relations, the two countries have weathered storms but have always maintained cooperation, bringing tangible benefits to the people of the two countries and to the rest of the world. Prior to the Xin Guan epidemic, more than 5 million people traveled between the two sides of the Pacific each year, 400,000 Chinese students came to the United States to study, and there were once more than 20,000 American students in China. The two sides have so far established 284 pairs of friendly provinces, states and cities. President Xi Jinping emphasized that the common interests of China and the U.S. far outweigh their differences, and that the two economies are deeply integrated, with you in me and me in you. China-U.S. relations should not be a zero-sum game in which you lose and I win, or you rise and I fall; the success of each is an opportunity, not a challenge, for the other. Mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation are the right way for a big country like China and the United States to get along.

Consul General Huang Ping said that the hope of China-US relations lies in the people, the foundation lies in the people, and the future lies in the youth. I hope that students will have a correct understanding of China, look at China objectively, go to China to take a walk and have a look, witness the development and changes of China, and experience the youthful charm of a modern China; enhance exchanges and mutual understanding, maintain openness and inclusiveness, and participate in the cause of China-US friendship and cooperation in various ways, enhance the exchanges and interactions of the two major civilizations of China and the U.S. and the people of the two countries, and make efforts to be the ambassadors for the friendship between China and the United States.

Consul General Huang Ping also answered the students' questions on the U.S. public opinion and perception of China, the survival and development of Asians in the U.S., and presented the school with exquisite books on Chinese history and culture on behalf of the Consulate General. In the enthusiastic cheers and applause, Huang Ping put on a commemorative shirt with the school's logo and name, which pushed the atmosphere to a climax, and many students couldn't help but say "Call" for the elegance, confidence, openness and groundedness of Chinese diplomats. The museum also live-streamed the speech through its social media photo wall, which attracted thousands of fans to watch online and comment on the speech. The official photo wall account of the university also synchronously released the speech tweets, which gained a lot of likes.

Mitchell welcomed Huang Ping and his delegation to the school, introduced the school's history, current development and philosophy, and said that this visit will open a window for students to better understand China and international affairs, and will provide a valuable opportunity for students to better understand the pluralism of civilizations and put into practice the values of the school's "Harmony and Diversity". It is hoped that the exchange of humanities education between China and the U.S. will benefit the younger generation more.

Guided by representatives of the school's African-American, Middle Eastern and Asian students, Consul General Huang Ping and his entourage walked into the school's English, Philosophy and Physics classrooms, exchanged cordial greetings with the teachers and students, and stopped to appreciate the exhibition of the students' works of photography and painting.

Founded in 1981, William Bodine High School of International Affairs, in partnership with the World Affairs Council of Philadelphia, is dedicated to expanding student knowledge and leadership through harmony and diversity. It has been recognized as a national "Blue Ribbon" school.