“We were them”: Americans of Vietnamese descent help Afghan refugees

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Thuy Do remembered her own family when she saw the footage of Afghans at the Kabul airport. She saw people desperate to flee their country after the Taliban took power.

Do remembers hearing how his parents tried to leave Saigon, now known as Ho Chi Minh City, after Vietnam fell under communist rule in 1975. As in Kabul, the US military tried to bring in as many. allies as possible from Vietnam by air. But many did not make it out until the US military left.

It took Do’s family many years and several failed attempts to finally leave the country and travel to the United States. She was nine when they arrived. His family had a total of $ 300. Each person only had two sets of clothes.

Today, Do is a 39-year-old doctor living in Seattle, Washington. Due to the experience of her own family, she decided to help Afghans facing a similar situation.

“We were them 40 years ago,” Do said. “With the fall of Saigon in 1975, that was us.”

Do and her husband have decided to donate an empty house they own to refugee resettlement groups. The groups have set up the house for the newly arrived Afghans who need a place to stay.

Television footage of Afghans seeking to board US military flights from Kabul brought back painful memories to many Americans of Vietnamese descent. They remembered their own attempts to escape Saigon.

The crisis has also led many Americans of Vietnamese descent to donate money to refugee resettlement groups. They provide housing and legal assistance to arriving Afghans.

Some also said they wanted to offer advice that refugees and new immigrants might need. This can include how to buy things from a grocery store, enroll the kids in school, or how to drive a car in America.

Since the Vietnam War, hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese have come to the United States. They settled in communities from California to Virginia. Today, Americans of Vietnamese descent are the country’s sixth largest immigrant group.

The United States had long announced its intention to withdraw from Afghanistan after a 20-year war. But the last days of the military in the country were much more dangerous than expected. More than 180 Afghans and 13 US servicemen were killed in an attack on Kabul airport.

During the last two weeks of August, the United States deported 31,000 people from Afghanistan. Most of them were Afghans who supported US military efforts.

But many Afghan allies have been left behind, with the country now under the control of the militant Taliban group.

Likewise, many Vietnamese Americans remember that they couldn’t get out before Saigon fell to communism.

Some endured long periods of time in re-education camps as punishment for helping Americans who had fought in their country. After leaving the camps, many tried to leave the country by boat. They have made extremely dangerous voyages across the sea in the hope of reaching neighboring countries.

Thousands of people did not survive their flight.

Afghans arriving in the United States may have a status for those who have supported US military operations. Some may have been sponsored come by family members already here. Others are expected to arrive as refugees or seek permission to travel to the United States through a process known as humanitarian parole.

For parole, Afghans need the support of a U.S. citizen or lawyer resident. Some Americans of Vietnamese descent have signed up to sponsor people they have never met, Tuấn ĐinhJanelle said. It is part of the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center.

Other efforts have focused on fundraising for refugee resettlement groups. Vietnamese and Afghan American artists hosted a special music event this month in Southern California to raise funds to help Afghan refugees. The Saigon Broadcasting Television Network said the event raised more than $ 160,000.

The event was also broadcast on Afghan-American satellite television, Bilal Askaryar said. He is a spokesperson for the #WelcomeWithDignity campaign to support asylum seekers.

“They saw the need. They saw the parallels“Askaryar said.” It’s really powerful to see that they saw this bond of common humanity between the Afghan community and the Vietnamese community. “

Thi Do is another Vietnamese American who is doing what he can to help. Do is a California immigration attorney. It helps newly arrived Afghans to register petitions that family members join them in the United States

Do was a young boy when Saigon fell. Her father, who served in the South Vietnamese army, was sent to a re-education camp. Upon his father’s return, the family left Vietnam by boat in the hope of reaching a country that would lead them.

Do remembers how the boat passed dead bodies floating in the water. He remembers how his father apologized for putting him and his siblings in danger.

Do’s family first reached Thailand and Malaysia. But the two countries forced them back to sea. The family then traveled to Indonesia, where they were treated in a refugee camp.

Do says, through his work he helped people flee persecution before. But so far, no situation has reminded him so much of Vietnam.

Do said, “I see myself a lot in these children running around the macadam at the airport.”

I am John Russell. And I am Ashley Thompson.

The Associated Press reported this story. Ashley Thompson adapted it for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor.

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Words in this story

desperate –Adj. very sad or upset because i have little or no hope

status -not. the official position of a person or thing under the law

sponsored –Adj. be supported or helped by a person, called a sponsor, who takes responsibility for a person

resident -not. someone who lives in a particular place

parallel -not. a way things are similar

petition -not. a formal written request addressed to an official person or organization

persecution -not. treating someone cruel or unfairly, including because of their race, religion or political beliefs

macadam -not. the surface covered by the roadway of an airport

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