This April marks a half-century since refugees began flooding from Vietnam after the end of the war, making their perilous escape from persecution and violence. In recognition of this anniversary, hundreds of Vietnamese Americans and others are slated to gather on April 26 at Boston College High School in Dorchester for “Remembering Black April: 50 Years of Vietnamese Diaspora.”
“It’s a pretty momentous year and time to think about the impact of the war’s legacy on families and communities,” said artist and community organizer Ngoc-Tran Vu, the lead project director with The 1975: A Vietnamese Diaspora Commemoration Initiative.
Her exhibit near the entrance of the event will consist of suspended traditional conical hats that will create a space for “reflection, memory and healing.”
Vu’s group is one of the many leading the commemoration. Others, who are part of the coalition, include Boston Little Saigon, the Vietnamese American Community of Massachusetts, VietAID, the Cultural Empowerment Organization, and the Massachusetts Vietnamese Scouts Association.
More than 600 people are expected to turn out, say the organizers, including community leaders, historians, artists, refugees, and immigrants from across New England. The event will include performances, arts and history exhibits, and storytelling to give voice to the diaspora and its “resilience, resistance, and contributions” to the greater society. Many of those who fled war came to Boston to rebuild their lives and Dorchester is considered a major hub for Vietnamese Americans in New England
The weekend will also kick off a series of commemorative public events running through April 30. These events will include at the JFK Library on April 27: a short documentary film screening of “On Healing Land, Birds Perch,” and a panel discussion on the trauma inflicted on refugees and war survivors. Flag ceremonies will be held at Boston City Hall on April 30 and along Dorchester’s Morrissey Boulevard to mark the official anniversary of the Fall of Saigon.
The organizers of Black April, however, say the commemoration is more than a reflection on history, and that it’s also a “movement to reclaim history, honor intergenerational resilience, and stand in solidarity with all displaced communities.”
Stories of Vietnamese refugees are often marginalized in mainstream accounts of the war, and “silenced in U.S. media, history textbooks and formal education,” say the organizers, who spent more than a year planning the event. They said the event series is a chance to tell their stories in their voices.
For Vu, the event has great personal significance. Born in Vietnam, she fled with her family from political persecution in the 1990s.
“For us to be able to bring our community together and share directly from our voices is really powerful,” she said, adding that a major goal was to “center community voice.”
For more information and to view a live streaming of the events, go to www.1975vietdiaspora.com.
