The fall of Saigon in 1975 ended the Vietnam War, and triggered a massive exodus of Vietnamese to the United States and other countries in the world.  According to the 2000 U.S. Census, the Vietnamese population is now up to 1,122,528.  The story of their exodus is divided into three series, defined by war, turmoil, flight, and perseverance. 

 First Wave, 1975-1978

In April of 1975, the fall of Saigon marked the first wave of 125,000 Vietnamese refugees to the United States.  The majority of these were ex-military and government officials, Vietnamese civilians who had worked for the United States during the war, and their families. In order to assist these refugees, the U.S. government set up temporary refugee camps in the Philippines, Guam, and Thailand.  Additionally, four Reception Centers on U.S. mainland housed and processed Vietnamese refugees at Camp Pendleton, California; Fort Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania; Eglin Air Force Base, Florida; and Fort Chaffee, Arkansas. 

The Reception Centers were set up as transitional institutions where refugees were processed into immigrants and oriented to American life.  The average stay in the centers was seven months. Several national voluntary agencies, under contract from the Department of State, resettled new arrivals in communities throughout the country and arranged "sponsorships" for the refugees. These sponsorships involved the provision of housing and initial support from interested Americans.  All first wave refugees were released from the Reception Centers by December 1975. 

 Second Wave, 1978-mid-80s

The “Boat People” 

 In 1978 another exodus of 85,000 people fled Vietnam in dilapidated vessels, marking the second wave of refugees known as the “boat people.” This exodus was triggered by political persecution and “bourgeois purges,” combined with forced displacement into “new economic zones,” “slave labor” reeducation camps, a deteriorating economy, and pressure brought about by conflict with China and Cambodia. 

 Approximately sixty percent of the boat people were ethnic Chinese, caught in a renewal of racial hatred that was exacerbated by a Chinese border excursion.  The new socialist government viewed the Chinese, many of whom were members of the merchant class, as “bourgeois” elements and encouraged their departure. 

At the height of the exodus, over 56,000 Vietnamese left in the month of June alone and this number reached over a million by mid-80s. Thousands drowned. Thousands were raped and massacred by pirates. According to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), around 500,000 to 600,000 boat people perished at sea. Those who survived reached refugee camps in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Hong Kong. From those camps, many were admitted to the United States and other "third countries.”

 Orderly Departure Program

 Reports on drowning and piracy, and cries of discontent from resettlement countries, led the UNHCR and Vietnam to negotiate an agreement, under which the government of Vietnam would allow "orderly departure" for some of its citizens with relatives who had resettled abroad. This family reunification program at first enjoyed some success, but those Vietnamese without relatives abroad continued to escape by boat. By the mid-1980s, numerous disputes arose between the Vietnamese government and resettlement countries over eligibility for the program, and this slowed the rate of departures significantly. Orderly departure was finally resumed in 1987. 

Third Wave Exodus, Late-80s-present

Political prisoners

 By the late 1980s and early 1990s, a large proportion of arriving Vietnamese were detainees released from “slave labor” re-education camps established by the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to punish, and to indoctrinate citizens who allied with the United States during the war. Concerned about these former comrades-in-arms, the U.S. Government pleaded for many years for their release and permission to emigrate. Finally, in 1988, the U.S. Department of State reached an agreement with the Vietnamese government to allow many of them to leave through the Humanitarian Operation and Orderly Departure Program. An estimated 100,000 were released to join family members overseas.

Amerasians 

Since the end of the war, many Americans had been concerned about the plight of "Amerasians," children born in Vietnam to Vietnamese women and American fathers during the war years. Because they were of "mixed blood," the Vietnamese government regarded them as "bui doi," or "the dust of life." When America offered to accept them as refugees, however, the Vietnamese government refused to allow their departure because they denied discriminating against them— a requirement for refugee status.  This discrepancy was resolved when the U.S. Congress passed The Amerasian Homecoming Act of 1987, a measure allowing Amerasians to be admitted to the U.S. as "immigrants" and for entitlement to the same benefits as refugees. Thus, began the migration of some 100,000 Amerasians to this country.

 Ongoing Resettlement

 Amerasians, former political prisoners, and family members continue to come to the United States through "orderly departure" and ordinary immigration channels. Additionally, through the "Resettlement Opportunities for Vietnamese Returnees" (ROVR), American officials are now re-screening thousands of Vietnamese who had been repatriated from Asian refugee camps to determine if they qualify for US refugee status. The U.S. Government, which now has diplomatic relations with Vietnam, has expressed its intent to "normalize" this migration through regular immigration channels in the near future.

Vietnamese America Today

 Since the arrival of Vietnamese refugees in April 1975, refugee policies for sponsors and voluntary agencies attempted to disperse arriving refugees.  The goal was not to assimilate the refugees, and to prevent the formation of ethnic communities.  The policies aimed at limiting the cost in social, health and educational services incurred by counties with large numbers of refugees, and to avoid the potential of job competition between refugees and native born Americans.  However, these policies were impeded by the fact that refugees often moved within the United States after initial placement. This secondary migration reinforced existing settlement patterns rather than enforced even distribution of refugees throughout the States.

 The results of this secondary migration generated a large concentration of Vietnamese today in California, Texas, and Washington.  According to the 2000 U.S. Census, of the 1,122,528 Vietnamese in the United Sates, 447,032 live in California, 134,961 live in Texas, and 46,149 live in Washington.  Of the Vietnamese population who live in California, approximately 233,573 live in Southern California, particularly in Los Angeles and Orange County.  San Francisco and San Jose hold the second highest population of Vietnamese, where approximately 146,613 call the Bay Area home.  Ethnic enclaves have sprouted in both locations, with Orange County being home to the suburban metropolis, “Little Saigon.” San Jose is known for its urban enclaves, such as Lion’s Plaza and Grand Century Mall. These vibrant, active communities are a testament to the will of the Vietnamese diasporas and the marking of a new Vietnamese life, weaving through the fabrics of a new America.

Sources

Strand and Jones.  Indochinese Refugees in America Vol. 16.  Duke University Press, 1985, pgs 33-35.

Hein, Jeremy.  From Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia: a refugee experience in the United States.  Twayne Publishers 1995, pgs 46, 52-53. 

“Vietnamese Refugees.”  [Online]  Available: http://www.searac.org/vietref.html

 “Vietnamese Studies Internet Resource Center.”  [Online]  Available: http://site.yahoo.com/vstudies/index.html