A year ago, Dr. Le Duy Can from Canada visited his son Le Truong Son and his family in Silver Spring, Maryland. While visiting this school, Dr. Le noticed the red flag of the Communists being displayed to represent the Vietnamese students going to this school. Dr. Le took a pro-active stand and explained to the Principal that only the Vietnamese Heritage Flag is honored by the Vietnamese refugees in the United States and elsewhere in the world. Prior to Dr. Le, a son of Mr. & Mrs. Dau Thanh Van of SBTN, who was a 5th grade student then, also voiced his concern to her. After Dr. Le’s intervention, the Principal graciously showed her understanding and compassion by replacing the red Communist flag with the Yellow Vietnamese Heritage flag, which was provided by Mr. & Mrs. Tuy Le, from Virginia. In appreciation of the Principal's understanding of Vietnamese heritage, Cait James (Le Truong Son’s wife) organized a Traditional Vietnamese Dance Club with the collaboration of Professor Kim Oanh, Tieu Anh Dang, and Tran Chau Le, to teach 28 students of Rolling Terrace Elementary School Vietnamese Dances. The Club of 28 elementary students practiced diligently every week 6 weeks. The first performance was on June 9, 2009, and was a big hit. Parents and students at the school were in for a wonderful and joyous treat. The show was recorded by Mr. Van and broadcast nationwide by SBTN, D.C. Some parents immediately signed up their children to join the Vietnamese Traditional Dance Club next school year. Our hats off to Cait. We sincerely thank Professor Kim Oanh, Tieu Anh Dang, and Tran Chau Le, for all their professional guidance, time, efforts, and dedication in bringing Vietnamese traditional dance to the Community. Genie Nguyen Ngoc Giao Founding Chair, Voice of Vietnamese Americans (VVA) http://voiceofvietnameseamericans.blogspot.com/2009/06/vietnamese-americans-brought.html   more »

UPDATE: January 17, 2009 The art exhibit at VAALA which is disrespectful to the Heritage Flag of the Vietnamese Diaspora is coming down. The event was visited by 400 people in southern California who expressed their dismay at the exhibit. VAALA cancelled the exhibit after one week. UPDATE: JANUARY 21, 2009. LETTER FROM Michelle Phương Thảo to Tram Le attached A MESSAGE FROM VIET ART Friends of Viet Art, Chúc Mừng Năm Mới! Happy New Year! VAC cordially invites you to our upcoming Before New Year Celebration - Mừng Tất Niên on Friday evening, January 16, 2009. We hope you will come to join VAC and the other Vietnamese organizations bidding farewell to the momentous 2008 (politic, economic, Olympic…), year of the Mouse and welcoming a hopeful 2009 (politic, economic, Special Olympic…), year of the Buffalo. As Executive Director of Viet Art Center, I am inclined to respect as well as to avoid commentary in regarding to the works of the other art organizations. However, a Vietnamese-American Art Organization, named VAALA, decided to spoil the New Year Celebration of their own Vietnamese community, in the name of ...Art and ... Freedom ... as they so claimed: (http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-vietarts10-2009jan10,0,4389762.story). Since this is the first Vietnamese-American art and culture organization officially exhibiting the most notable symbols of the Vietnamese Communist regime (ten years ago, it was a reckless and want-to-be-famous individual, Tran Truong), I am making an exception to voice my opinion regarding this matter. After all, ART is POLITICS as VAALA confirmed as one of their main reasons to create F.O.B.II. Below are my messages to VAALA executive members and the organizers of “F.O.B.II: Art Speaks”: In regarding to Freedom: THE SOLDIER Father Dennis Edward O'Brien, USMC It is the soldier, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press. It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech. It is the soldier, not the campus organizer, who has given us the freedom to demonstrate. It is the soldier, not the lawyer, who has given us the right to a fair trial. It is the soldier who salutes the flag, serves under the flag, and whose coffin is draped by the flag, who allows the protester to burn the flag. So I add: It is the South Vietnamese soldiers, who have suffered years in re-education camp, not you, who while in and out of prison, have persistently, sacrificed their life to teach us the truth meaning of freedom. It is your parent, not you, who has risked their life to bring you to this country, so that you grew up in freedom. In regarding to your “Arts”, “liberalism”, and your accomplishment in education: Any 20 year-old who isn't a liberal doesn't have a heart, and any 40 year-old who isn't a conservative doesn't have a brain.” (Unknown) It is a thousand times better to have common sense without education than to have education without common sense. (Robert G. Ingersoll) You can get all A's and still flunk life. (Walker Percy) So I add: A Ph.D. in school does not automatically grants you a Ph.D. in life. In regarding to your actions, here my last but not least words: “Thou art a cat, and a rat, and a coward.” (Miguel de Cervantes) I wish that you would take appropriate actions to remedy the pain that you have caused to our elders. Peace and Love, Michelle Phương Thảo ****************************************************************************** On the Vietnamese Heritage flag -- a lesson to the California Curriculum Board from the organizers of Journey from the Fall by Ham Tran: Kim-Oanh Nguyen-Lam explained the importance of incorporating a lesson that highlights the issue of the Vietnamese Freedom and Heritage flag. “The flag has been used as a collective identity for Vietnamese American refugees,” Nguyen-Lam said. “Our children who were born [in the United States] do not have the same connections. So it is important for them to have an understanding and respect [for the elder generation] – whether they agree or not – [and] do not look down on their parents. [It is also important] that their teachers understand why the community feels so sensitive about [the flag]. … In order to build relationships, we need to know each other and respect each other’s past.” The lesson nurtures awareness that “the disregard for this flag is also a traumatic reminder of how [Vietnam’s] histories of war, exile and political disenfranchisement have been silenced and rendered invisible in the years since 1975 in the U.S. The insistence on the usage of this Republic of Vietnam flag is an attempt to reinsert this Vietnamese American history into U.S. history and to give Americans a more comprehensive understanding of the Vietnam War and its legacy.”   more »

Dear Ms. Krieger: Your article, "Finally, 'Little Saigon' banners fly over San Jose," is indicative of a lack of basic journalistic skills and laziness on your part; i.e., fact checking. Your editor should send you to a local college for a journalism 101 course. Shame on you for the audacity of your ignorance in stating that the South Vietnamese residents of San Jose and surrounding area were singing the national anthem of the communist Vietnamese,"To Liberate the South," when celebrating after the inauguration of Little Saigon. All you had to do is ask any one of the Vietnamese veterans the name of South Vietnam's national anthem and they would have proudly told you it was and still is "Oh, Citizens - Nay Cong Dan Oi..." You have managed to insult thousands of Vietnamese veterans and their families; the millions of courageous South Vietnamese who fought gallantly against the communists and died as a result; those millions of Vietnamese who suffered from years of hardships in the concentration camps (ironically called "reeducation camps), and those who died as a result; those thousands of Vietnamese who died on the high-seas fleeing the tyranny of the Vietnamese communists; the tens of thousands of Vietnamese who were murdered after the communist take over of South Vietnam; and the almost 60 thousand Americans who died fighting for the freedom of the South Vietnamese and the millions of Americans who served there. If you and your paper fail to write a front page apology the these Vietnamese whom you insulted, you should be fired and your paper stop publishing. Sincerely, Michael Benge. I served in Vietnam for 11 years as a civilian Foreign Service Officer, five of which was as a POW. ************************************************************************************* Finally, 'Little Saigon' banners fly over San Jose By Lisa M. Krieger Mercury News Article Launched: 10/11/2008 08:07:15 PM PDT Long-awaited "Little Saigon'' banners were unfurled Saturday over the sidewalks and traffic of San Jose's Story Road, ending a contentious effort by the city's South Vietnamese community to name the business district after their fallen former capital. The installation of the 18 colorful banners was celebrated with speeches and song by a crowd of hundreds of Vietnamese, political exiles who have formed one of the largest expatriate enclaves in the nation. The banners — privately funded, but sanctioned by City Hall after a year of protests, petition drives and combative meetings — have become a symbol of newfound freedom to those who fled their country after a long and losing war against the Communists. "What these banners symbolize is that they've arrived,'' said San Jose Vice Mayor David Cortese, wearing a Vietnam Republic flag-themed tie, decorated with three red stripes on a yellow field. "After three decades, they've established themselves here and re-established their values — freedom, human rights, democracy, capitalism and basic family values." The design of the banners was agreed upon in negotiations between the Vietnamese community and the city attorney's office, he said. A prominently featured Vietnam Republic flag was toned down, he said. An image of City Hall's Rotunda was added. Because the banners along the one-mile stretch of Vietnamese-dominated businesses are only temporary installations under city law, the Vietnamese community is now raising money to erect two permanent concrete monuments saying "Welcome To Little Saigon." One would be where Story Road intersects McLaughlin Avenue, the other at Story and Roberts Street. New "Little Saigon" license plate holders are also for sale by the Little Saigon-San Jose Foundation. Activists say they will seek to have "Little Saigon" placed on official city maps. Saturday's emotional ceremony opened with a march of aging South Vietnamese army officers, carrying the American and Vietnam Republic flags, side by side. The crowd then joined in rousing renditions of "The Star Spangled Banner" and the Vietnam Republic anthem, "To Liberate the South." Cao Hien, president of the Little Saigon San Jose Foundation, called for a moment of silence "for the sacrifice of the Vietnamese people, solders and 58,000 Americans who bravely fought and lost their lives for Vietnamese freedom and democracy." ****************************************************    more »

The Vietnamese Canadian Federation is pleased to learn from Mr. Hung Nguyen, representative of the Vietnamese community of Whitehorse, that Ms. Deb Jutra, President of the Whitehorse Heritage Festival Society has informed him: there will be no communist flag in the Grand March. The Federation hopes that the decision of the Whitehorse Heritage Festival Society on this flag of the Communist regime in Vietnam (a gold star on a red background) will be extended to include all forms of political propaganda of this regime at the festival. Most members of the overseas Vietnamese community, including Vietnamese Canadians, are former political refugees who fled the Communist regime in Vietnam after South Vietnam was taken over by Communist troops from North Vietnam in 1975. Therefore, allowing the Vietnamese Communist regime to spread its propaganda at the festival would be an utmost affront to them and would bring back the painful memories of their sufferings under the Vietnamese Communist regime. The Vietnamese Canadian Federation calls upon the organizers of the Whitehorse Heritage Festival to show understanding of the feelings of the Vietnamese community in Canada on this issue and to act accordingly. The Federation is the non-profit umbrella organization of the Vietnamese community in Canada. Established in 1980, it currently has 10 chapters in all major cities from coast to coast, with a national office in Ottawa. ********************************************************************************** Liên Hội Người Việt Canada mới được ông Nguyễn Gia Hưng, đại diện cộng đồng người Việt tại Whitehorse, cho biết bà Deb Jutra, Chủ Tịch Hội Chợ Di Sản Whitehorse thông báo: sẽ không có lá cờ của Cộng Sản Việt Nam trong cuộc diễn hành của Hội Chợ Di Sản. Liên Hội Người Việt Canada mong mỏi quyết định của Ban Tổ Chức Hội Chợ Di Sản Whitehorse về lá cờ của chính quyền Cộng Sản Việt Nam (ngôi sao vàng trên nền đỏ) sẽ được áp dụng cả với các hình thức tuyên truyền khác của chính quyền này. Phần lớn người Việt tại hải ngoại, kể cả người Canada gốc Việt, đều là những người tị nạn chính trị chạy trốn chính quyền Cộng Sản tại Việt Nam sau khi quân đội Cộng Sản Bắc Việt xâm chiếm miền Nam Việt Nam vào năm 1975. Do đó, cho phép chính quyền Cộng Sản Việt Nam tuyên truyền trong cuộc hội chợ này sẽ làm tổn thương về phương diện tinh thần cho họ và gợi lại những kỷ niệm đau thương của họ dưới chế độ Cộng Sản. Liên Hội Người Việt Canada kêu gọi Ban Tổ Chức Hội Chợ Di Sản Whitehorse hãy thông cảm lập trường của cộng đồng người Việt tại Canada và hành xử một cách tương xứng. Liên Hội Người Việt Canada là một tổ chức bất vụ lợi bao gồm các tổ chức cộng đồng người Việt tại Canada. Liên Hội được thành lập vào năm 1980, hiện có 10 hội thành viên từ đông sang tây, với trụ sở chính đặt tại Ottawa.   more »

The San Jose City Council is paying attention at last to the people who demand that their city, the 10th largest city in the United States, have a gateway entry to a redeveloped section which properly reflects the heritage of the people who came there as refugees. These refugees rebuilt the city house-by-house, store-by-store, one small business at a time. They sent the children to public schools and made that success a priority of life that puts other groups to shame. The power struggle over human rights in Vietnam is now on the table, thanks to your efforts and those of San Jose Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren and now California Senator Barbara Boxer. Will you lead that struggle from a strong moral position of ecumenism that includes "Americans" not as foreigners but as fellow immigrants and citizens with a stake in society who need to learn about Vietnam today in order to bring freedom there? You can't do it alone. Ask the government of South Africa about that. All the larger society see among Little Saigon in San Jose leadership are jackals howling at each prey before they rip it to shreds. Such good press to target a vulnerable young woman, Madison Nguyen. Now how about targeting the real power in San Jose, Chuck Reed's international business machine called the Chamber of Commerce? How about requiring them to speak out and ask for human rights in Vietnam? Get them while their stocks are down. There are Democrats and Republicans in Congress who are in leadership for human rights in Vietnam. How about asking every presidential candidate for the election in 2008 to take a stand for human rights in Vietnam? Most of them are riding on rhetoric of "no more Vietnams." How about educating them about that history? Can you do it without requiring that more young Americans (including Vietnamese Americans) die in Iraq to prove your valor in the 1960s and 1970s? I dare you to try. More than 50% of the engineers at Cisco Systems, San Jose's largest employer, are of Vietnamese heritage. Do they say anything as a power group about the meaning of Little Saigon as a name of cultural heritage to share? Do they even say anything as a group about human rights in Vietnam? What about it, VACETS? The Veterans of Foreign Wars in the USA showed the flag of South Vietnam with pride as they honored the 58,000 Americans who died fighting communism in Vietnam last week in Washington D.C. at the 25th anniversary of The Wall, which is the most-visited memorial in the country. Was there anyone from the Vietnamese American power structure thanking the VFW for recognition of the heritage flag? I know the Amerasian Family was there with pride in Vietnamese American heritage. How about showing the nonVietnamese City Council members that you can work together as Vietnamese people, that is your strength in society? It is the strength of any minority group in American society. Some do it well, and become "seamless" in the fabric, but when you examine the texture of the cloth you see their culture and values as part of the whole. Strengthen the fabric of our society by reweaving, not unraveling. The whole world's watching. Jean Libby, editor VietAm Review    more »

A Vietnamese freedom heritage flag replaced the official flag for Vietnam hanging in the entry way of the MCC-Penn Valley http://videos.kansascity.com/vmix_hosted_apps/p/media?id=1518925 Video by Todd Feeback of the Kansas City Star Thank you so much, Mr. Thomas Walker of Penn Valley College and the Vietnamese community of Kansas City for explaining the issues of Communist Vietnam today. Jean Libby, editor VietAm Review   more »

Last month, after being informed of the town’s decision to take down the Heritage flag, the Vietnamese Canadian Federation wrote to Mayor Cummings and Sundre councillors to provide them with background information on this flag, and worked together with the Vietnamese community in Calgary to launch a worldwide campaign to urge the town council to reverse its decision. The Vietnamese Canadian Federation is grateful for the support shown by thousands of people in Canada, the U.S., Australia, Europe, and other countries in this campaign. On behalf of its supporters, the Federation would like to express its deep appreciation to the Sundre’s Town Council for its heartfelt and commendable decision. Thanks to this decision, the Heritage and Freedom flag cherished by millions of Vietnamese all over the world will continue to fly in Canada as a beacon for democracy and freedom, which, we all hope, will eventually come back to Vietnam. The Vietnamese Canadian Federation is the non-profit umbrella organization of the Vietnamese community in Canada. Established in 1980, it currently has 12 chapters in all major cities from coast to coast. Its national office is located in Ottawa.   more »

To Tram Le and the curators of F.O.B. 2: Yesterday I read the interview of Da Mau with Tram Le, Người viết: Hoang Van 28/01/2009 To Tram Le and the curators of F.O.B. 2: Yesterday I read the interview of Da Mau with Tram Le, and learned that F.O.B. means "fresh off the boat", a derogatory term that people use to designate "boat people" or "Vietnamese refugees". You use that term for your exposition, obviously your exposition should include only the Vietnamese refugees (and their families)'s artworks. Now I have some feedback to your interview as follows. . l . l . l l l Da Màu: Do you anticipate a protest and conceptualize it as part of an overall exhibition? Trâm Lê: We were definitely aware of the possibility of a protest; however, we were not sure how it would play out. We had planned that in the context of the entire exhibition with all the descriptions and labels on the wall, the viewers’ reactions would have been varied and will further conversation rather than close down lines of communication. Unfortunately, because of the LA Times skewed article that came out before the opening of the exhibition, certain images and quotes were taken out of context, and the anti-communist faction was prematurely inflamed. This was further fueled by certain Vietnamese community media mistranslating Linda Vo’s quote, “The exhibit will test the community…” to mean that VAALA is provoking the community (VAALA thách thuc cong dong…).------------ Thuan Do: You did not "provoke" or "challenge" the community, but you "tested the water" before you plunge head in, seeing how the community reacts to your controversial artworks, so that the communists could continue to influence the community in many other ways! I can see that you know nothing about politics, especially communists and communism, and you should not include politics into your exposition! You made yourself a communist agent without knowing it! http://anhduong.info/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3100&Itemid=1   more »

What does Chinese products and business mean today? Lead paint in toys manufactured by slave labor; poison fish put on the market without health regulations for harvest. What does Vietnamese products and business mean today? American Vietnamese lured to "doi moi" finding themselves in jail because their Vietnamese "partners" have found it more lucrative to fleece them than sell honest goods. (see "How Vietnam Venture Proved a Costly Move" for Hoan Nguyen, an American citizen now in the B-14 prison in northern Vietnam in the Wall Street Journal online, http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118702662210596089.html?mod=googlenews_wsj The City of San Jose is considering naming one of its entry corridors (Story Road) the Vietnamese Business District. Many immigrants from Communist Vietnam would rather see it named Little Saigon Business District. There is a public hearing on the matter from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, August 15, 2007 at the Tully branch library, 880 Tully Road, San Jose.   more »

After many long journeys in the thirty years since Vietnamese people began immigration in substantial numbers to the USA, the heritage and culture of Vietnamese Americans is celebrated in a Heritage Project exhibition at the Smithsonian Institution opening on January 19, 2007. Check it out on www.vietam.org.   more »

Vietnamese students at the University of Texas-Arlington have a petition online to protest administration displaying the communist flag of Vietnam during a cultural display. Parade announcement in Toronto, Canada, to raise awareness of Vietnamese heritage flag.   more »