VietAID hosts discussion of ‘Black April’ on April 28

Bao Nguyen

The Vietnamese American Initiative for Development (VietAID) will host a special program on Sat., April 28 at 6 p.m. at their headquarters on Charles Street in Fields Corner. It will feature Bao Nguyen, the former mayor of Garden Grove, California, who will speak on the topic, “Remembering Black April,” a reference to the fall of South Vietnam’s capital, Saigon, in 1975. A donation of $10 is requested at the door.

The Reporter asked VietAID’s director of Community Relations, Huong Pham, to discuss the speaker series and its purpose.

Reporter: What is the purpose of the upcoming speaker series? How many events do you plan to have?

Huong Pham: Our upcoming Speaker Series is a venture meant to highlight different voices in the Vietnamese diaspora, not just here in Boston, but nationally as well. There are few opportunities to bring our community together to talk about social issues and their impacts on a bigger scale but with this series, our hope is that we can have open and candid discussions about different topics, how they affect us individually and as a community, as well as how we can all work together. We haven’t decided how many total events we’ll host, but we certainly are aiming to have at the very least, 3-4 more; of course, we’d love to continue doing this long-term!

Reporter: How do the events of April 1975 still impact the Vietnamese-American community here in Boston?

Huong Pham: April 30th continues to be a day of commemoration for many Vietnamese Americans here in Boston. It’s a reminder of displacement, trauma, and the long road to healing that is still ahead of us. The effects of April 30 impact us all, whether you were a refugee/immigrant from Vietnam, or you are a descendent of them; intergenerational trauma gets passed on and has continued to burden our community in a way that has yet to be talked about openly, and resolved together.

Reporter: The guest speaker is the former mayor of Garden Grove, California. How did you connect with him?

Huong Pham: Former Mayor Bao Nguyen is somebody who has committed himself to civil leadership in more ways than one; through his work, he connected with James Bui, our director of strategy and development. He was excited to join us for our inaugural Speaker Series event coming up at the end of the month, and we’re honored to have him.

Reporter: What impact do you want to have on the community with these events?

Huong Pham: Our hope is that our impact is a positive one; while we are certainly hosting these events, the ways that the dialogue will be approached will transform accordingly with community participation. We want these events to be for the community, and in order to do so, they need to be empowered by the voices of the collective.

As with any community, some voices are louder and more privileged than others and our biggest efforts will be in highlighting a wide range of perspective and opinions. We want to celebrate the diversity and complexity of our diaspora and having different folks be part of this is one way to do so. Our end goal is to pave the way for younger generations to be more open about discussing social issues and the ways they affect us as a community.By having community leaders take the reins on this effort, we hope to not only energize others, but have them recognize how inspiring their own potential is as well.

Reporter: What are some of the other events happening at VietAID that the community at-large should know about?

Houng Pham: As of right now, we’re focusing on launching this Speaker Series, but as events happen, the best places to learn about them are on our social media platforms. We’re on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram) or on our website: vietaid.org.

To reserve a ticket for the Black April event on April 28, visit eventbrite.com/e/speaker-series-remembering-black-april-tickets-44487892484#tickets


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