Senator Nguyen  His Holiness the Dalai Lama State Senator Janet Nguyen, who represents parts of Long Beach, met the Dalai Lama for the second time this year in Rochester, Minnesota. She also met the Dalai Lama at his 80th birthday celebration in July at the University of California, Irvine.

According to a release issued by her office, Nguyen discussed her Kindness Campaign movement and human rights in Vietnam.

“As the inspiration for my Kindness Campaign, it was truly humbling to witness, first-hand, His Holiness’ commitment to the international proliferation of democracy and human kindness.” said Senator Nguyen in a statement. “#KindCalifornia and the spread of the Kindness movement across Southern California is a testament to His Holiness’ ability to appeal to the hearts of millions.”

Nguyen was joined by Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait and Westminster Mayor Tri Ta in their discussion of the Kindness Campaign movement in California, which kicked off August 2 at the OC Food Bank with 150 volunteers packing over 40,000 pounds of food, all with the aim of promoting selflessness and compassion among Californians. Nguyen was part of the movement to designate July 2015 as “Kindness Month.”

The visit culminated with discussions surrounding the release of Vietnam’s prisoners of conscience, Dieu Cay and Ta Phong Tan, and China’s efforts to control parts of the South China Sea and the Paracel Islands.

“I am deeply privileged to have had the opportunity to sit down with His Holiness to discuss the work that has been done to highlight the human rights abuses and the incarceration of prisoners of conscience across the world,” said Senator Janet Nguyen.

To join the #KindCalifornia, sign up in the following three ways:
1. Website: Visit http://district34.cssrc.us/ to submit their pledge
2. Twitter: Tweet the hashtag #KindCalifornia
3. Facebook: Visit www.Facebook.com/KindCalifornia and leave a message on the wall with the message “I am #KindCalifornia”

Above, left: photo courtesy of Sen. Nguyen’s staff.