When I was much much younger I travelled to all sorts of strange places. Strange for a young British kid to find himself, but also strange for people who saw me there. I travelled from Islamabad to Hong Kong. Along the way we saw some amazing places in China, but the one that really connected with me was this small Buddhist village called Xiahe. I’ll never forget walking among the monks, watching them pray, debate and have a laugh with each other. I fell in love with the people, their kindness and their openness. The year after I went to Tibet to see the country for myself. I read all the books I could find on the fight for freedom. I thought of myself as a buddhist. When college ended I moved to India and worked for the Tibetan Government in Exile. Really I worked for a small museum that housed the Dalai Lamas photo archive. I got to know the local McLeod Gang community. I drank with Tibetans, fought with Punjabis and fell in love with India. I was years and years away from sobriety, but the year I lived in Northern India was the seed that planted my knowledge that a sober life was the only way forward. It took another 8 years to get there. I owe the Tibetan teachings a lot.
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Tibetan Uprising Day in New York City - March 10, 2016
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Tibetan Uprising Day in New York City - March 10, 2016. I lived in Dharmsala for a year in 2002 - 2003 working for the Tibet Museum that managed the personal photography archive of His Holiness The Dalai Lama. It was a life changing experience, archiving and documenting the historic documents of the cultural destruction that was seen in Tibet since the middle of last century. I worked closely with the Tibetan Government in Exile and made many life long friends in the small Himalayan village known as McLeod Ganj. It's always a solemn reminder on March 10 and an opportunity for me to look back on that experience. It was particularly special to hear Robert Thurman speak this year as I have read some of his books, or attempted to wrap my head around the vast texts on Tibetan Buddhism that he has written.
Ben Hider - Event, Food and Portrait Photographer based in New York City and Westchester
Tibetan Uprising Day, observed on March 10, commemorates the 1959 Tibetan uprising against the presence of the People's Republic of China in Tibet. The failure of the armed rebellion ultimately resulted in a violent crackdown on Tibetan independence movements, and the flight of the Dalai LamaTenzin Gyatso into exile.
Tibetan Uprising Day is observed primarily by organizations and individuals who support Tibet such as Students for a Free Tibet, and is often accompanied by the release of a statement by the Dalai Lama. Tibetan independence groups often organize protests or campaigns on March 10 to draw attention to the situation in Tibet.
In 2008, a series of riots and violent clashes broke out in the Tibetan city of Lhasa when monks were arrested during peaceful demonstrations.[5] The events in Lhasa triggered a nationwide uprising with protests occurring in every region. The Central Tibetan Administration estimates the number of Protests to have occurred in 2008 to be 336.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama in New York City
