Activists gathered at the White House yesterday alongside more than 1,500 Tibetan refugees to protest the Chinese government’s crackdown on Tibetan demonstrators, according to the Washington Post. Buddhist monks were joined by a few American sympathizers in their efforts to persuade President Bush to boycott the opening ceremonies at the Summer Olympics in Beijing.

Tibetan sympathizers have a powerful ally in U.S. House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi, who yesterday urged President Bush to consider a boycott. The opening ceremonies (and the Summer Olympics more broadly construed) have been a subject of increased attention, both in Beijing and in the West. France President Nikolas Sarkozy threatened a boycott last week. (Explicitly disinvited to the games: Björk.)

Two protesters were arrested after the DC demonstration moved to the Chinese Embassy, where an object struck a Secret Service Agent. It’s not the first time activists and security have clashed near the Chinese Embassy, but it seems to be the first instance of violence in a number of recent Tibetan independence rallies.

Image by carlweaver