Los Angeles Times | O.C. Vietnamese American activists urge youth to speak up for their beliefs
By Ada Tseng
In July, the VietRISE activist group led a parade of marchers down All-American Way in Westminster, intently going from Freedom Park to Liberty Park for a “Bring Human Rights Home for Immigrants and Refugees” rally.
“At an intersection, we thought, ‘Let’s just stop traffic for a little bit and let people know we’re here,’“ says VietRISE co-founder and executive director Tracy La.
The demonstrators figured they’d get a few honks (and they did), but La remembers their excitement as some drivers got out of their cars and joined them. Others who lived nearby walked over after hearing the commotion and have since gotten involved in the activism.
That was just one of 11 rallies (and one vigil, for the victims of this year’s El Paso, Texas, shooting) that VietRISE has organized in Little Saigon since the organization formed last year. It now has three full-time and one part-time staff members and about 25 active volunteers.
When members march, they wear “ICE out of Little Saigon” shirts and hold signs defending sanctuary status. They condemn the Trump administration’s attempt to repeal the U.S.-Vietnam repatriation agreement, which excludes Vietnamese refugees that arrived before July 12, 1995 from deportation — and call out politicians (especially their fellow Vietnamese American politicians) when they vote in ways they find harmful to their community.
They create bilingual hashtags — #ChoTatCa (#SanctuaryForAll), #ChongLạiSuGhet (#FightAgainstHate), #DongTraiTu (#CloseTheCamps) and #BaoVeGiaDinh (#ProtectFamilies) — and issue press releases in both English and Vietnamese.
They want to normalize speaking out in their community.
“My dad says to me, ‘I don’t want you to ever be afraid of saying what you believe in,’” La said.
She understands that many young Vietnamese Americans don’t have the same support from their parents, who may be nervous about their children getting involved in American politics.
“We’re not trying to do anything dangerous or protesting just because we want to make noise,” says La. “We want to do it strategically to highlight specific issues ... Young people have told us that they were scared to come out for a protest. We don’t want people to be afraid anymore.”
