The third largest airline in the world is now linked to a Chinese Communist Party-backed educational foundation that champions communist propaganda amongst the American youth.
United Airlines has been discovered to subsidize travel for American high school students who participate in a CPP-backed communist propaganda, encouraging the youth to "take actions or adopt positions supportive of Beijing's preferred policies."
The program is the brainchild of the China-United States Exchange Foundation (CUSEF), which is funded by the Vice-Chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the "highest-ranking entity overseeing" China's United Front Work Department.
According to the National Pulse, the communist propaganda program's goal is to alleviate any "sources of potential opposition" to the policies and authorities of the Chinese Communist Party and to encourage Chinese communities abroad, foreign governments, and others to position themselves as allies and supporters of Beijing's policies.
Foreign Agent Registration Act (FARA) filings with the Department of Justice showed that CUSEF has implemented these programs that involve "effectively [disseminating] positive messages to the media, key influencers and opinion leaders, and the general public."
CUSEF has been known to sponsor trips to China for mainstream corporate media outlets to give insights and in exchange get "favorable coverage." The foundation has also sponsored trips for U.S. officials who they deem are "open-minded" about the CCP.
Most recently, CUSEF has been found to have sponsored yet another trip for American high school students from the Chicago Urban League, with United Airlines funding the students' flights. A press release revealed that over 20 American high school students from 18 public and charter schools in Chicago were sent on an "educational, cultural and social trip through China" to experience "the sights, sounds and cultures of Beijing, Shanghai and other Chinese cities."
This is not the first time CUSEF had targeted American high school students as it also sponsored similar trips, this time aimed at college-level students. Testimonials of such praised China as an "amazing communist country" and how "the culture and history of China far exceeds those of the United States."
In fact, a review said that China exceeds the U.S. so far that "it's predicted that China will be the #1 country of foreign policy and investments in less than 20 years."
"Open your eyes and your mind, research for yourself and don't be corrupted by the misinterpretation the classrooms feed us," Keara Jones, a student from Clark Atlanta University who participated in the CUSEF program in 2017 wrote, indicating how effective the CCP's propaganda is.
Despite tensions between the U.S. and China, there has still been an outpour of Chinese students looking to study in America. According to Nikkei Asia, there has been a "dramatic surge" in the last few decades of international enrollment in the U.S., particularly from China.
In fact, Chinese students represent 35% of the total number of international enrollees, indicative of how not all Chinese citizens may not see a bright future within their borders. The report also revealed how there are over 350,000 mainland Chinese who have been studying in the United States in the past few years.
