Thirty One Years and Counting

by Hoi B. Tran

April 30 is rapidly approaching. It will mark the 31^st anniversary of the mass exodus to freedom of Vietnamese. Across the United States, Vietnamese Americans will again commemorate this painful chapter in Vietnam history.

In the past thirty years we had assembled to remember and mourn the death of hundreds of thousands compatriots who lost their lives in pursuit of freedom. We will gather this time to share the traumatic experiences our fellow men suffered after the fall of Saigon. Hundreds of thousands of our brother-in-arms spent many atrocious years in communist re-education camps under the most barbarous and brutal treatments. The physical and mental wounds they bore will never heal. As for us fortunate to have escaped communist hell to freedom in America thirty years ago, the struggle to get back on our feet was not pain free. It was hardship during the first phase of resettlement. We proved our ability to adjust and adapt to the new environment and become self sufficient earning the respect from the locals. The Vietnamese had been known to be stoic, conscientious, intelligent and resilient. Over the course of a few years they have become successful in professional and business fields, contributing a good deal to the adopted countries. After settling down and merging into the main stream they successfully establish strong communities in America and the world over.

As time went by and tears and pain subsided, we must reassess in cool head the aftermath of 30 April 1975. This must not be misconstrued as an attempt to discount the catastrophic disaster of that unfortunate date. It should be viewed as an impartial re-evaluation of the negative and positive consequences of the tragic event. No one could deny the emergence of strong Vietnamese communities worldwide. It would not be possible to ignore the impressive professional successes by the Vietnamese in the competitive global arena. Those are positive returns from an unfortunate happening. Throughout our four thousand years history, Vietnam has never had such phenomenal exposure in all five continents. But the price tag was rather high.

By now, the majority of Vietnamese in America has reached retirement age and many had already retired. We lived for thirty consecutive years in a civilized and free society. We enjoyed a peaceful life devoid of fear of retribution. We were given the opportunity to learn and develop our ability with chances for advancement. Many of us have achieved corporate executive level in various professional fields. Our children were toddlers or in their teens when they set foot in American soil. They have grown and become productive American citizens. Following their elders’ footsteps, many surpassed their parents in various mainstream professional and political fields. America is a great place of investment for our progeny gray matters. Prior to April 1975, the majority of Vietnamese parents would do anything to send their children to higher education in America. Had that sad date not happened how could Anh N Duong become a lead scientist at the US Naval Surface Warfare Center? How could Viet Dinh have the chance of appointment to Assistant US Attorney General due to his brilliant legal ability? How could Jane X. Luu have the means to discover the Kuiper belt object with David C Jewitt and receive the Annie Award in Astronomy? How could Elizabeth Pham and Lilly Tran become the first Vietnamese female jet pilots? The Air Force Academy, the Naval Academy and West Point would not have had young male and female Vietnamese valedictorian graduates! The list goes on and on…

During the same period the so called victors of the Vietnam War dragged the country backward miserably. After the invasion of Saigon, a horde of thugs forcibly looted wealth and seized properties. High ranking communists quickly became billionaires. After their trite propaganda died down, the incompetent officials of the communist suddenly realized that they dragged the country through the deep hole of a bankrupted economy. The general population suffered a miserable life under poverty line.

The terribly poor living condition in Vietnam struck the conscience of Vietnamese abroad. Exiled Vietnamese worldwide kept pumping cash home to help starving and sick family members. Besides, many Vietnamese medical groups from all over the world went to Vietnam providing free health care to the needy in North and South. Vietnamese humanitarian groups worldwide raised funds to build schools, orphanages, handicapped and senior citizens centers and to help disaster victims in country. We were not doing it without a certain feeling of guilt. The truth is we were assisting our enemy, the unforgivable dictators in the strengthening of their narcissistic regime. Nevertheless, do we want to cut off financial aid to our family and other less privileged folks in country? The answer is certainly a resounding no. We remembered that thirty years ago when we needed help, American philanthropists had opened their heart, homes and check books to provide us the needed assistance.

We are thankful for all the blessings from the decent good hearted people. We should overcome negative emotions and extend love and compassion to the needy in Vietnam; and that is the difference between charitable human beings and the twisted evil-minded communist perpetrators. At the end of the day, we cannot ignore two positive outcomes of the tragic April 30, 1975. First, we have established a strong financial base outside Vietnam that could be an enormous financial back up for the mother land in case of need. Had it existed sixty years ago, millions of lives could have been saved in the horrendous famine of the northern region of Vietnam in 1945. Secondly, Vietnamese of different age and sex groups have been offered the opportunity to compete head on worldwide and they passed the test with flying colors. Those are truly our consolations.