Fighting Among Vietnamese Families in San Jose, 5 People Were Killed
Alexander Nguyen researched how Black activist Bayard Rustin advocated for state of war victims in Vietnam, Lao people's democratic republic, Cambodia and Thailand for his project. Photo by Tran Nguyen.
Alexander Nguyen was asked at the offset session of a summertime mentorship plan why he was there. 7 weeks later, standing in the backyard of the Viet Museum on a blazing hot Sabbatum, he said he finally institute an respond.
"For x years, I take shut out my community," he told a crowd of nearly twenty people. "This has been a healing process for me."
Growing up in i of the largest Vietnamese enclaves in the U.S., the Eastward San Jose native said he didn't experience welcome by his ain community.
"Because I never spoke the language, they said I'm not i of them," he said.
Nguyen's journey to unravel his own conflicts with the Vietnamese customs began when he joined a mentorship program hosted by the Vietnamese American Roundtable, a community organizing group.
Sowing seeds
The summertime program, chosen Student Engagement and Pedagogy for Development and Success (SEEDS), is part of the roundtable's annual initiatives to encourage civic engagement amid Vietnamese youth between 14 and 24. The sessions began in June and ended on Saturday with a student showcase.
"This yr has been a success," said Philip Nguyen, recently-appointed executive director of the Vietnamese American Roundtable. "Nosotros about cancelled the showcase because of new COVID-nineteen cases, merely I'm glad we're able to pull it together… This has been the most fun that we had."
Started in 2018, SEEDS is designed to address the lack of a leadership pipeline in San Jose's Vietnamese community, Philip said. The goal is to railroad train and grow time to come community leaders in the Bay Surface area, providing resources and lessons on professional development, entrepreneurship and careers. A grouping of almost ten students met every Saturday for seven weeks during the summer.
"SEEDS is the first place where I see young people come together and talk almost issues in our community," participant Candice Phan said.
'Representation is very important'
To help students improve understand the issues facing Vietnamese Americans, the program organized a theme for each session, ranging from the history of refugee settlement to grassroots organizing and career pathways. Invitee speakers included a number of roundtable board members, city officials and others. The roundtable hosted the plan at the Viet Museum and in Little Saigon.
Student participants and volunteers received scholarships of $100 at the stop of the program. The group also celebrated the completion of the program over dwelling-cooked hủ tiếu.
Alexander Nguyen, who'due south on rails to be a social scientific discipline teacher, researched how Black activist Bayard Rustin advocated for state of war victims in Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Thailand. He said he wants to teach indigenous studies in Eastward San Jose.
"When y'all hear about the Vietnam War, all yous hear is the massacre and Agent Orange," he said. "Some of the states didn't even learn about (the Vietnam War) in school."
Phan, a sophomore at Evergreen Valley High School, was the youngest participant this year. She asked to bring together SEEDs earlier this summer to her parents' delight.
"I have known about this program for a few years at present," said Tanya Tran, Phan'south female parent. "I think it'due south and so important to learn virtually our roots."
Phan aspires to be a health care worker, instructor and journalist. She focused her showcase on Vietnamese representation in the media, especially in books and social media. She saw her journeying of finding and forming identity through three phases, "nghe lời" (post-obit her parents' guidance), "khám phá" (exploring) and "thực hành" (applying).
For her presentation, Phan complied a list of books written by Vietnamese and Vietnamese American authors.
"Representation is very of import, I think that'southward how we could fight anti-Asian racism," Phan said. "Nosotros demand more representation in movies, films, literature and fifty-fifty politics."
American dream
Thao Truong calls herself a "con gái đích tôn" in her family unit, which she interprets every bit "successful girl." Her projection surrounds the importance of her family, also as the pressure level to reach the American dream for her parents.
"My family has always been so important to me," Truong said. "Through this program, I get to empathize more almost my parents and the struggles they went through… It has been eye-opening for me."
Truong's family left Vietnam with little coin when she was six. Her parents often joke about when Truong volition purchase them a firm, she said.
"It's stressful," she said. "But on the other paw, I want to requite back to them, thinking about all the sacrifices they made when they left their whole life back. I'm happy to give them the American dream."
Truong, a full-fourth dimension college pupil at De Anza College, works at Panda Express and runs a establish shop, called Appa Plants.
"I have always felt continued to plants," Truong said. "The garden civilization connects with a lot of Vietnamese families, and it'south also my dad's dream to have a garden."
Source: https://sanjosespotlight.com/summer-program-sows-seeds-for-san-jose-vietnamese-youth/
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