Boys & Girls Club: Sold To Falun Gong

Boys & Girls Club: Sold To Falun GongPhoto: Amy Stephenson/Hoodline
Amy Stephenson
Published on March 21, 2014
The Boys & Girls Club on the corner of Page & Stanyan sold recently. To Falun Gong.

Falun Gong, the controversial Chinese meditative and spiritual exercise organization, bought the 32,000 square foot space for $6.9 million. SocketSite cited a "plugged-in tipster" as their source. We set about trying to confirm, but haven't been able to find anyone through our network.

No word on what they plan to do with the space, or even whether they plan to use it as a club for members.  

For the uninitiated, you can read up on Falun Gong's recent controversies here on SFGate. Briefly,
A belief system that incorporates the breathing and exercises of qigong, which has been practiced for millennia, Falun Gong gained the sympathy of elected officials across the United States after the Chinese government moved to silence it in 1999.

But many American counselors, qigong teachers and lay people liken the movement to a cult. They say it can endanger adherents and that it actually benefits from the controversy surrounding it.

Followers say such criticism originates in Chinese government propaganda. The Chinese government allegedly put Falun Gong followers in prisons and labor camps in 1999, and founder Li Hongzhi fled to the United States.

So, we'll keep you posted on that.