Week 4
“From Dust to Gold: The Vietnamese Amerasian Experience” by Kieu Linh Valverde discusses the unique cultural experience of children born of Vietnamese mothers and American fathers. The occupation of Vietnam by the United States bore fruits through the intermixing of American soldiers with the native women. Amerasians as they are referred to by the author, distinguishing them from the earlier racially-mixed group of the Eurasians whose ancestry came from the mixing of Vietnamese and European people. The author discussed the hardships Amerasians had to face during the period. As a group, they were treated differently by both Vietnamese and American society, usually pointing out their half-ness as a negative aspect. Stereotyping the union of the parents of these Amerasians of which an irresponsible American G.I. impregnating a cheap Vietnamese bar girl only added to the negative views of the group. And it was not until there was enough sympathy from the public did the American Government actually exerted official assistance to Amerasians in Vietnam. Despite the late recognition from the US government, Amerasians were still subjected to injustice and insensitive treatment during the processing of citizenships. Amerasians have the unique double burden of being refugees and multi-racial. They are a suppressed and marginalized group that is the product of the irresponsible involvement of the United States in foreign countries. It is only with the proper education of the public and the push for equality-based legislations supporting Amerasians will there be a positive change in the viewing and treatment of this group. With the United States’ current political landscape, is it possible to repeat a similar case like this with other countries nowadays?
Vietnamese Refugee Camp on Palawan, the Philippines
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&time_continue=34&v=_dONB8J7KYk
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