Expressions of the Vietnamese American Experience

April 30, 2025, marks the 50th anniversary of the Fall of Saigon and the end of the Vietnam War.* As we commemorate this important occasion, the day also provides an opportunity to reflect on the journey that brought Vietnamese refugees to the United States, as well as the growth and development of this community.

Since the Vietnam War deeply divided the United States, it is not surprising that the arrival of the Southeast Asian refugees was also highly contested. There were those who did not want to receive them as refugees and those who believed that it was America’s responsibility to admit them because of its role during this conflict. Regardless of the original disagreement, Vietnamese Americans are now a permanent fixture in our society. 

The journey for Vietnamese refugees in the first decades in America was often challenging. As refugees who left their country with practically nothing but the clothes on their backs, they found themselves focusing on the need to survive and to keep their families safe. Almost overnight, they found themselves living in a new and different country with a different language, culture, traditions, and customs. As the years went by, we began to see the formation of small yet vibrant communities throughout the country, which allowed the refugees to become “Americans” and create ways to continue to maintain their culture, religions, and traditions. As of this writing, many Little Saigons can be seen throughout the US, including in San Jose, home to the largest Vietnamese American community outside of Vietnam. Along the way, the experiences and hardships of being a displaced person from the first generation were hidden and, at times, intentionally not shared with their children. As often is the case with immigrants, the first generation did not have the luxury of contemplation and reflection as their focus was primarily survival. However, as the “knee-high” and second generations come of age, especially those who attended colleges and universities, the need for their history to be unearthed and told begins to unfold. They wanted to understand more about their families’ history, their journey to the US, and how all these events have shaped them.

“All are using their medium and creativity to incorporate their life experiences as refugees and children of refugees growing up here exposed to two different cultures.”

Fifty years also provides an adequate passage of time for the second generation to come of age and become professionals in their own right. This collection includes academic, visual, and performance artists, writers, musicians, chefs, and more. All are using their medium and creativity to incorporate their life experiences as refugees and children of refugees growing up here exposed to two different cultures. They are all capturing and expressing an understanding of our society that speaks to the issues that have shaped various aspects of the social and cultural world. In many ways, all are asserting their place and using their “voice” and creativity to help understand and define what it means to be living in a multiracial, multiethnic, diverse country like the United States. They remind us that America is a place that has been built not just by the labor of different communities but also by the tremendous contribution to the arts, literature, music, and culture of our society. 

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*NOTE: While this is oftentimes referred to as the “Vietnam War,” it is essential to recognize that it also involved Cambodians and Hmong refugees who were displaced as a result of this conflict.