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1. How hard was your journey?
“My journey took 13th-years, a long time to come to the USA. It started at 2003 until 2016“ Truc was born in the Duc Pho District. Duc Pho is a district in Quang Ngai, a city in Central Vietnam. It's one of the smaller cities, but still has a population at least 150,000. -
Fact
The average income from all Vietnamese immigrants is about $63,200. That salary is about the amount a blue-collar worker would make -
2. What was your journey like?
“My dad followed protocol F-3 in a Family Preference Category, and then I followed him to came to USA.” And on April 13th, 2016, they left to come to America -
Fact
The median age of all Vietnamese people coming to America was about 50 years old (the average age of all immigrants was about 45) The three Nguyen families came with barely any money, and no jobs for them. Each family would live with another that already had a house here. -
3. Why did you take this journey?
“ I needed to follow my parents’ plan, because I wasn’t 18 years old that time. And coming to USA is my dream, just like every Vietnamese person” -
Fact
In 2017, at least 1 million Vietnamese people were living here in the United States of America. -
4. Were you excited? Scared? Nervous?
“Those were my feelings. Excited because I can meet my aunts and my uncle in the U.S.. Scared because it's not my home country. Nervous because I can't speak English.” In her first year in America, Truc really didn't know how it would be different than at her home town. The books and internet really can't describe how beautiful this country can be, yet how dangerous and complex it also could be. -
Fact
Almost 120,000 Vietnamese people were unauthorized in between 2010 and 2014. -
5. Who else in the family felt the way you felt?
“ I think everyone in my family had the same feeling as me. They were just as scared as me and nervous.” *Picture: Truc and her family last Christmas -
Fact
Most immigrants from Vietnam came to California, Texas, Washington State and Florida.
But everyone that came with Truc came to Virginia -
6. What did you have to leave behind, what was hard about leaving?
“I think I left all my friends. Somehow, I am not talking with them like the way I did before. I now talk to each other very politely, but not that friendly feeling like before.” *Picture: Truc and her friends in Vietnam -
Fact
About 17% of Vietnamese families living in America are in poverty -
6. What things did you think were going to happen? What happened that you didn’t expect?
“ I thought somebody will be disrespectful because my English isn't well, then it didn’t really happen.” In the beginning, Truc and everyone else did not know how to speak English at all. Today, she and her cousins are able to understand most sentences and respond well. -
Fact
26% of Vietnamese immigrants have a bachelor’s degree. -
7. What is the best thing that happened here to you?
“I think the best thing that happened here is that I met a lot of nice teachers. They helped me a lot in language.” *Picture: Truc in her class at Tucker, 2017. -
Fact
Vietnamese immigrants represent the “sixth-largest foreign-born group in the country” (Vietnamese Immigrants in the United States). -
8. What are the cultural differences between here and in Vietnam?
“ It's very different. For example, in Vietnam, I just had half day in school and half day at a teacher's house for tutoring.” Not only that, students had to wear uniforms at school, unlike most public schools here. *Picture: Truc's school. -
Fact
A lot of the Vietnamese immigrants that have received
a green card got it through family reunification channels, kind of like this journey. -
9. After all the years since this journey, how happy are you now?
“ Time's passing, it's 3 years now I have become accustomed to the present life, I can speak English, not much but enough to talk with people here.” Now, the three families that came here from 2016 have comfortable houses and good jobs, and are living as happy as ever -
Fact
Only 8% of Vietnamese people did not have health insurance, compared to 20% of all immigrants -
10. What do you think will happen in the future?
“I don't know, I have no idea. I think I will continue learn English and going to college. I hope to have a good job someday,“- What kind of job? "Maybe hair stylist?”
