Misplaced Pages

#464535

106-518: The Refugees is a 2017 short story collection by Viet Thanh Nguyen . It is Nguyen's first published short story collection and his first book after winning the Pulitzer Prize for The Sympathizer . The eight-story collection, set in different locations in California and Vietnam, earned favorable reviews from critics, particularly for offering insight into the lives of migrants like those

212-647: A B.A. in philosophy, and earned an M.D. in 1991 from Stanford University . Tung Nguyen is the Stephen J. McPhee, MD Endowed Chair in General Internal Medicine and Professor of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco . He also served as a Commissioner on President Barack Obama ’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (2011–14) and as the Chair of

318-814: A 2009 report by the Mexican Genome Project, which sampled 300 Mestizos from six Mexican states and one Indigenous group, the gene pool of the Mexican mestizo population was calculated to be 55.2% percent Indigenous, 41.8% European, 5% African, and 0.5% Asian. A 2012 study published by the Journal of Human Genetics found the deep paternal ancestry of the Mexican Mestizo population to be predominately European (64.9%) followed by Amerindian (30.8%) and African (5%). An autosomal ancestry study performed in 2007 on residents of Mexico City reported that

424-486: A Jewish organization at the 92nd Street Y canceled a scheduled reading by Viet without explanation. After the cancellation, other authors pulled out of the centre's upcoming programming schedule, and at least two 92NY employees resigned. On Instagram , Viet wrote: "I have no regrets about anything I have said or done in regards to Palestine, Israel, or the occupation and war". During the Israel–Hamas war , he supported

530-583: A Pew Hispanic Center report in 2006 and the Pew Religious Landscape Survey in 2008, Mexican Americans are significantly less likely than other Latino groups to abandon Catholicism for Protestant churches. In 2008, "Yes We Can" (in Spanish: " Sí, se puede " ) was adopted as the 2008 campaign slogan of Senator Barack Obama . His election in 2008 and reelection in 2012 as the first African American president depended in part on

636-538: A Spanish colony, the territory of California also had an established population of colonial settlers. Californios is the term for the Spanish-speaking residents of modern-day California; they were the original Mexicans (regardless of race) and local Hispanicized Amerindians in the region ( Alta California ) before the United States acquired it as a territory. In the mid-19th century, more settlers from

742-555: A United States force of 60 men on an exploratory expedition. Fremont made an agreement with Comandante Castro that he would stay in the San Joaquin Valley only for the winter, then move north to Oregon. However, Fremont remained in the Santa Clara Valley then headed towards Monterey . When Castro demanded that Fremont leave Alta California, Fremont rode to Gavilan Peak , raised a US flag and vowed to fight to

848-558: A book of short stories entitled The Refugees . Viet is the editor of The Displaced: Refugee Writers on Refugee Lives, which includes essays by 17 fellow refugee writers from Mexico, Bosnia, Iran, Afghanistan, Soviet Ukraine, Hungary, Chile, and Ethiopia, among other countries. Viet has also released a non-fiction book published by the Harvard University Press in March 2016 entitled Nothing Ever Dies: Vietnam and

954-599: A boycott of Israeli cultural institutions, including publishers and literary festivals. Viet is married to Lan Duong, a faculty member in cinema and media studies at USC and a poet, who also grew up in San Jose after coming to the United States as a young refugee. They have two children and live in Pasadena, California . Viet has also been a fellow of the American Council of Learned Societies (2011–2012),

1060-651: A brief exchange, he disappears when she turns away. The next day the ghostwriter tells her mother about her experience; her mother buys new clothes and asks the ghostwriter to give them to him. When he returns the following night, the ghostwriter offers him the clothes, but he refuses, saying that ghosts' clothes exist for the living. They talk, which eventually leads to her reminiscing about the day her brother died; they were boat people boarded by pirates. In an attempt to prevent her from being abducted, he cut her hair, bounded her breast, and smeared oil on her face. It worked, but when one pirate grew suspicious, her brother knifed

1166-543: A compelling reason; he believes that to see her sister of the same name was his best chance of making that happen. Near the end of Vivien's trip, he escorts his daughters on one of his guided tours of the Củ Chi tunnels . He speaks of the tunnel as if he is sympathetic to a communist victory of Vietnam, which alarms Vivien, but Phuong assures her it is an act for tourists. On Vivien's penultimate night in Vietnam, she gives gifts to

SECTION 10

#1732787357465

1272-414: A diverse population made up primarily of Indigenous and European ancestry, along with African . Also on a smaller scale, some also have backgrounds of East Asian and Middle Eastern descent (mainly Lebanese). The majority of the Mexican population identifies as mestizo . In colonial times, Mestizo was understood to be a person of mixed heritage, particularly European and Native American. The meaning of

1378-444: A family of nine people from three generations. When his mother catches sight of a soldier's uniform, Mrs. Hoa tells them that it belonged to her husband, who died in the war; she all continues to tell about how she also lost two of her sons. Upon hearing this, his mother offers her condolences and a $ 200 donation. After they leave, she takes her son to a nearby 7-Eleven , gives him $ 5, and tells him to buy whatever he wants. Upon browsing

1484-630: A grant from the Fund for Innovative Undergraduate Teaching and the USC Provost's Prize for Teaching With Technology. Mexican-American Most Mexican Americans reside in the Southwest , with more than 60% of Mexican Americans living in the states of California and Texas. They have varying degrees of indigenous and European ancestry, with the latter being of mostly Spanish origins. Those of indigenous ancestry descend from one or more of

1590-484: A group of riled refugees are currently in Thailand gearing up for an assault on the homeland. His mother refuses to pay, citing that it is futile at this point. Before leaving Mrs. Hoa states and she will return. After she is gone, his father reminds his mother that not paying may hurt their business as rumors about their "unpatriotic" behavior could spread throughout the community and turn people against them. One night,

1696-480: A heated exchange, he bends down and puts his ear by her belly, saying "I can be the father." His father emerges from his room, sees them, and observe what they will do next. The title comes from how Mimi asks Thomas during one of their rare meetings, "Aren't there times when you'd rather be someone else besides you?" Phuong, her father Mr. Ly, mother, and two brothers live in the 21st century Saigon . They receive news that Mr. Ly's daughter from his first marriage, who

1802-438: A language teacher who claims she has a "Vietnamese soul." They argue often over ideology regarding Vietnam and their respective roles in shaping it. One day, Legaspi takes them to his demining facility and shows Carver and Michiko his workforce and innovations. When Carver comments about how the idea could be used for warfare, Claire impugns him, which causes him to walk out. When a monsoon strikes fifteen brief minutes later, he

1908-542: A librarian. As time goes by, her husband's conditions worsen and he continues to call her "Yen" and forgets some of his daily routines. Trying to prevent her husband from calling her "Yen" again, she surreptitiously pens in his diary, "Today I called my wife by the name of Yen. This mistake must not be repeated." However, this does not work and he even begins to react violently to Mrs. Khanh's presence, which surprises her; he never before lashed out at her, even at his lowest points. She nonetheless helps him, reading to him when he

2014-687: A part of History, drafted as reluctant players in horrific wars... Unlike soldiers, these civilians, many of them women and children, never get the recognition they deserve. Some endure more terror, see more horror, than some soldiers." After the fall of Saigon in 1975, Viet's family fled to the United States. They left behind Viet's 16-year-old adopted sister, whom he did not see again for nearly 30 years. His family first settled in Fort Indiantown Gap , one of four American camps that accommodated refugees from Vietnam, then moved to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania , until 1978. San Jose, California

2120-458: A quarter and the University of California, Riverside for a year before finishing his studies at the University of California, Berkeley . He graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1992 with a Bachelor of Arts in English and Ethnic Studies. At the age of 26, he earned a PhD in English from Berkeley in 1997. In 1997, Viet moved to Los Angeles for a teaching position as an assistant professor at

2226-499: A racial classification but an ethnic group. The barrier that the language places on people who are immigrating from Mexico is difficult due to the importance that is placed in the United States related to knowing how to speak English. The lack of support from surrounding people places an even more difficult strain given that there is not much remorse or yet very little patience that comes from those who these Mexican immigrants may find themselves seeking aid from. Genetic studies made in

SECTION 20

#1732787357465

2332-420: A racial one. It is vaguely defined and may include people who do not have Indigenous ancestry, people who do not have European ancestry, as well as people of mixed descent. Such transformation of the word is the result of a concept known as "mestizaje" , which was promoted by the post-revolutionary Mexican government in an effort to create a united Mexican ethno-cultural identity with no racial distinctions. It

2438-666: A series of death threats, Seguín relocated his family in Mexico. He was coerced into military service and fought against the US in 1846–1848 Mexican–American War. Although the events of 1836 led to independence for the people of Texas, the Latino population of the state was very quickly disenfranchised, to the extent that their political representation in the Texas State Legislature disappeared entirely for several decades. As

2544-575: A series of six lectures titled To Save and To Destroy: On Writing as an Other . His series is the first to be given in person on Harvard’s campus since 2018. In addition to teaching and writing, Viet serves as cultural critic-at-large for the Los Angeles Times , he is also the founder and editor of diaCRITICS, a blog for the Diasporic Vietnamese Artists Network. Viet's debut novel, The Sympathizer

2650-653: A spare collection, but The Refugees doesn’t dabble in flash fiction—there are no palate cleansers between courses. Instead, The Refugees serves up elegant, hearty stories full of vibrant language and memorable characters." In the Yale Review of International Studies , Chase Finney said that "Nguyen asks readers not to pity his characters, but instead take a step back from the back-and-forth of media coverage and see his characters–and hopefully by extension, all refugees–as human beings simply seeking to be understood." Michael Schaub, writing for NPR , wrote that The Refugees

2756-537: A successful transplant, he is healthy again. Although the donor was supposed to remain anonymous, a bug in the hospital computer system results in Arthur receiving mail stating that he has Men's liver. Feeling the need to repay someone, he calls all "Vus" in the directory. After countless calls resulting in dead ends, Louis listens to Arthur's story and says that Men is his father. Because of his gambling addiction, Arthur's wife Norma often acts coldly towards him. Because of

2862-581: Is "an urgent, wonderful collection that proves that fiction can be more than mere storytelling — it can bear witness to the lives of people who we can't afford to forget." Yiyun Li , in The Guardian , wrote that "With anger but not despair, with reconciliation but not unrealistic hope, and with genuine humour that is not used to diminish anyone, Nguyen has breathed life into many unforgettable characters." Viet Thanh Nguyen Viet Thanh Nguyen ( Vietnamese : Nguyễn Thanh Việt; born March 13, 1971 )

2968-775: Is a National Book Award finalist. In 2002, Viet published a treatise entitled Race and Resistance: Literature and Politics in Asian America ( Oxford University Press ). Viet has also co-edited a treatise entitled Transpacific Studies: Framing an Emerging Field ( University of Hawaiʻi Press , 2014) along with Janet Hoskins. Viet's non-fiction articles and essays have appeared in journals and books, including PMLA , American Literary History , Western American Literature , positions: east asia cultures critique , The New Centennial Review , Postmodern Culture , The Japanese Journal of American Studies , and Asian American Studies After Critical Mass . In an opinion column in

3074-606: Is a South Vietnamese-born American professor and novelist. He is the Aerol Arnold Chair of English and Professor of English and American Studies and Ethnicity at the University of Southern California . Viet's debut novel , The Sympathizer , won the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction , the Dayton Literary Peace Prize , the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize , and many other accolades. He

3180-543: Is also named Phuong but adopted the name Vivien, is coming to visit them from Chicago . During their outings, Vivien spends lavishly and the family concedes because Vivien insists and they believe that she is a physician. During the vacation, the family learns many things about each other. Phuong learns that Vivien's mother escaped Vietnam via boat, to the reluctance of Mr. Ly. When Vivien asks why he named both of his daughters Phuong, he replies that he did so because he knew Vivien would not return to Vietnam decades later without

3286-798: Is based on the figures of the last racial census in the country, made in 1921. According to an opinion poll conducted by the Latinobarómetro organization in 2011, 52% of Mexican respondents said they were mestizos, 19% Indigenous, 6% white, 2% mulattos, and 3% "other race". As the United States' borders expanded, the United States Census Bureau changed its racial classification methods for Mexican Americans under United States jurisdiction. The Bureau's classification system has evolved significantly from its inception: For certain purposes, respondents who wrote in "Chicano" or "Mexican" (or indeed, almost all Latino origin groups) in

The Refugees (short story collection) - Misplaced Pages Continue

3392-470: Is because of this that sometimes the Mestizo population in Mexico is estimated to be as high as 93% of the Mexican population. Per the 2010 US Census , the majority (52.8%) of Mexican Americans identified as being white . The remainder identified themselves as being of "some other race" (39.5%), "two or more races" (5.0%), Native American (0.4%), black (2%) and Asian / Pacific Islander (0.1%). It

3498-642: Is drenched and later hospitalized for pneumonia. While resting up, he notices Claire has spent the whole day by his side. That night, when he needs to use the bathroom, Claire helps him and he is reminded of the times many years ago when he did the same for her. After the death of his mother, Thomas lives with his father in Echo Park . One day, because his father's car was stolen, Thomas drives his father to see Mimi, his father's longtime mistress turned girlfriend. His father also frequently mentions how Thomas lacks courage because he lost his ex-wife Sam's love because he

3604-500: Is no simple explanation, it is possibly some combination of assortative mating , changes in migration patterns over time (with more recent immigrants coming from areas of more concentrated Indigenous communities), population growth and other unexamined factors. For instance, a 2006 study conducted by Mexico's National Institute of Genomic Medicine (INMEGEN) , which genotyped 104 samples, reported that Mestizo Mexicans are 58.96% European, 35.05% Amerindian, and 5.03% African. According to

3710-407: Is notable that only 5% of Mexican Americans reported being of two or more races despite the presumption of mestizaje among the Mexican population in Mexico. This identification as "some other race" reflects activism among Mexican Americans as claiming a cultural status and working for their rights in the United States, as well as the separation due to different language and culture. Hispanics are not

3816-589: Is the foremost literary interpreter of the Vietnamese experience in America, to be sure. But his stories, excellent from start to finish, transcend ethnic boundaries to speak to human universals." Writing in The Washington Post , Megan Mayhew Bergman described The Refugees as "an important and incisive book written by a major writer with firsthand knowledge of the human rights drama exploding on

3922-458: Is the son of Men Vu and that Louis is not related to the family at all. Enraged, Arthur returns to Louis's house and confronts him. After Louis admits that he took advantage of the situation, Arthur tells him to retrieve his counterfeits or he will get rid of them in the desert. Louis tells him that if he does, he will report to the authorities regarding Martín's undocumented landscaping workers. Realizing that he has no choice but to comply and leave

4028-428: Is unable to do so himself. She even confronts him regarding him calling her "Yen," but this is to no avail; he thinks she is crazy. Soon after, she retires to spend more time with him. While they are shelving books together, Mrs. Khanh beings to "love" with her husband again, and even embraces the name "Yen." She then proceeds to read him a short story from a book he gave her as a gift many years ago. The title comes from

4134-710: The Edgar Award for Best First Novel from an American Author from the Mystery Writers of America , and was a finalist in the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction , and the PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize for Debut Fiction. The novel has also won the Dayton Literary Peace Prize . The New York Times included The Sympathizer among the Book Review' s "Editors' Choice" selection of new books when

4240-654: The Great Depression in the 1930s, many Mexicans and Mexican Americans were repatriated to Mexico. Many deportations were overseen by state and local authorities who acted on the encouragement of Secretary of Labor William N. Doak and the Department of Labor. The government deported at least 82,000 people. Between 355,000 and 1,000,000 were repatriated or deported to Mexico in total; approximately forty to sixty percent of those repatriated were birthright citizens – overwhelmingly children. Voluntary repatriation

4346-543: The Mission District . At first, Liem is uncomfortable with Parrish and Marcus's lifestyle and considers calling his refugee service contact, but instead, he slowly adapts. He also starts working at a liquor store to earn money and uses his downtime to study and write to his parents. When Parrish goes on a business trip, Liem and Marcus begin to bond. They eat dim sum together and talk about their lives. Liem also eventually says "I love you" to Marcus, who feels that

The Refugees (short story collection) - Misplaced Pages Continue

4452-765: The New York Times , Viet discussed having been a refugee and characterized refugees as heroic. Viet and illustrator Thi Bui , along with their respective children, collaborated on a children's book titled Chicken of the Sea . In 2016, Viet spoke out for Palestinian rights by supporting the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. In 2023, after Viet signed an open letter in the London Review of Books urging "an end to violence and destruction in Palestine,"

4558-1180: The Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard (2008–2009), and the Fine Arts Work Center (2004–2005). He has also received residencies, fellowships, and grants from the Luce Foundation, the Mellon Foundation , the Asian Cultural Council , the Djerassi Artists Residency , the Bread Loaf Writers' Conference , the Huntington Library , the James Irvine Foundation , the Warhol Foundation and Creative Capital . His teaching and service awards include

4664-456: The Southwest : California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas, during World War I many moved to industrial communities such as St. Louis , Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland , Pittsburgh , and other steel-producing regions, where they gained industrial jobs. Like European immigrants, they were attracted to work that did not require proficiency in English. Industrial restructuring in the second half of

4770-644: The Tejanos who colonized Texas in the Spanish Colonial Period established a government in Texas that desired independence from Spanish-ruled Mexico. In those days, there was no concept of identity as Mexican. Many Mexicans were more loyal to their states/provinces than to their country as a whole, which was a colony of Spain. This was particularly true in frontier regions such as Zacatecas , Texas , Yucatán , Oaxaca , New Mexico , etc. As shown by

4876-617: The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo , which ended the Mexican–American War . Mexicans living in the United States after the treaty was signed were forced to choose between keeping their Mexican citizenship or becoming a US citizen. Few chose to leave their homes, despite the changes in national government. The majority of these Hispanophone populations eventually adopted English as their first language and became Americanized . Also called Hispanos, these descendants of independent Mexico from

4982-575: The University of Southern California in both the English Department, and in the American Studies and Ethnicity Department. In 2003, he became an associate professor in the two departments. He is currently the Aerol Arnold Chair of English and Professor of English, American Studies and Ethnicity and Comparative Literature. He was appointed the 2023 Charles Eliot Norton Professor of Poetry at Harvard University and presented

5088-642: The civil rights movement ; demands ranged from the restoration of land grants to farm workers' rights, to enhanced education, to voting and political rights, as well as emerging awareness of collective history. The Chicano walkouts of antiwar students is traditionally seen as the start of the more radical phase of the Chicano movement. Mexican Americans were found to place more importance on social and economic issues than they do on immigration. Those who are not citizens care considerably more about social issues. Both citizens and noncitizens identify ethnic issues as

5194-440: The "Some other race" category were automatically re-classified into the "White race" group. In some cases, legal classification of White racial status has made it difficult for Mexican-American rights activists to prove minority discrimination. In the case Hernandez v. Texas (1954), civil rights lawyers for the appellant, named Pedro Hernandez, were confronted with a paradox: because Mexican Americans were classified as White by

5300-547: The 1830s, as the westward spread of United States settlements and of slavery brought significant numbers of new settlers into the region known as Tejas (modern-day Texas), then part of Mexico. The Mexican–American War , followed by the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848 and the Gadsden Purchase in 1853, extended US control over a wide range of territory once held by Mexico, including the present-day borders of Texas and

5406-634: The 1910s to the 1920s, referred to as the Great Migration. During this time period the Mexican Revolution was taking place, creating turmoil within and against the Mexican government causing civilians to seek out economic and political stability in the United States. Over 1.3 million Mexicans relocated to the United States from 1910 well into the 1930s, with significant increases each decade. Many of these immigrants found agricultural work, being contracted under private laborers. During

SECTION 50

#1732787357465

5512-889: The Albert S. Raubenheimer Distinguished Junior Faculty Award for outstanding research, teaching and service, the Mellon Mentoring Award for Faculty Mentoring Graduate Students, the Resident Faculty of the Year Award, and the General Education Teaching Award. Multimedia has also been a key part of his teaching: In a recent course on the American War in Viet Nam, he and his students created An Other War Memorial , which won

5618-735: The Americans reinforced their forces in what is now southern California. Tens of thousands of miners and associated people arrived during the California Gold Rush , and their activities in some areas meant the end of the Californios' ranching lifestyle. Many of the English-speaking 49ers turned from mining to farming and moved, often illegally, onto land granted to Californios by the former Mexican government. The United States had first come into conflict with Mexico in

5724-536: The Commission (2014–17). As a child, Viet often enjoyed reading literature about the Vietnam War, preferably those from the Vietnamese perspectives, which were rather rare at the time in comparison with the overwhelming amount of American narratives. While growing up in San Jose, Viet attended St. Patrick School, a Catholic elementary school, and Bellarmine College Preparatory . Viet attended UCLA for

5830-654: The European ancestry of Mexicans was 52%, with the rest being Amerindian and some African contribution. Maternal ancestry was analyzed, with 47% being of European origin. Unlike previous studies that included only Mexicans who self-identified as Mestizos, the only criteria for sample selection in this study was that the volunteers self-identified as Mexicans. While Mexico does not have comprehensive modern racial censuses, some international publications believe that Mexican people of predominately European descent (Spanish or other European) make up approximately one-sixth (16.5%); this

5936-454: The Memory of War , which served as a critical bookend to a creative project whose fictional bookend was The Sympathizer ". According to Viet's website, the book Nothing Ever Dies "examines how the so-called Vietnam War has been remembered by many countries and people, from the US to Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, and South Korea." Kirkus Reviews has also called the book "a powerful reflection on how we choose to remember and forget." The book

6042-477: The Mexican Government secularized the missions. In effect this meant that the government took control of large and vast areas of land. The government eventually distributed these lands among the elite of the population in the form of Ranchos, which soon became the basic socio-economic units of the province. Relations between Californios and English-speaking settlers were relatively good until 1846, when military officer John C. Fremont arrived in Alta California with

6148-442: The Mexican population have found their common ancestry at 58.96% European, 31.05% Amerindian and 10.03% African. There is genetic asymmetry, with the direct paternal line predominately European and the maternal line predominately Amerindian. Younger Mexican Americans tend to have more Indigenous ancestry; in those studied born between the 1940s and 1990s, there was an average increase in Indigenous ancestry of 0.4% per year. Though there

6254-408: The National Farm Workers Association, and her co-leader César Chávez united with the strikers to form the United Farm Workers . Huerta's slogan " Sí, se puede " (Spanish for "Yes we can"), was popularized by Chávez's fast. It became a rallying cry for the Chicano Movement or Mexican-American civil rights movement. The Chicano movement aimed for a variety of civil rights reforms and was inspired by

6360-412: The Ranchos that had been originally granted to them by the Mexican government. In the late nineteenth century, liberal Mexican president Porfirio Díaz embarked on a program of economic modernization that triggered not only a wave of internal migration in Mexico from rural areas to cities, but also Mexican emigration to the United States. A railway network was constructed that connected central Mexico to

6466-476: The Southwest during Spanish colonial times, as well as local and Mexican Amerindians. New Mexico Hispanos were a notably large majority of the southwest US population. The vast majority of Hispanos are genetically Mestizo with varying degrees of Spanish ancestry, as well as ancestry from Pueblos and various North American Indigenous tribes. New Mexico was far more populated since the 16th century in comparison to Texas & California. As early as 1813, some of

SECTION 60

#1732787357465

6572-446: The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, Mexicans were repeatedly targeted by legislation that targeted their socio-economic standing in the area. One significant instance of this is exemplified by the passage of legislation that placed the heaviest tax burden on land. The fact that there was such a heavy tax on land was important to the socio-economic standing of Mexican Americans, because it essentially limited their ability to retain possession of

6678-429: The US border and also opened up previously isolated regions. The second factor was the shift in land tenure that left Mexican peasants without title or access to land for farming on their own account. For the first time, Mexicans in increasing numbers migrated north into the United States for better economic opportunities. In the early 20th century, the first main period of migration to the United States happened between

6784-419: The United States began to enter the territory. In California, Mexican settlement had begun in 1769 with the establishment of the Presidio and Catholic mission of San Diego. 20 more missions were established along the California coast by 1823, along with military Presidios and civilian communities. Settlers in California tended to stay close to the coast and outside the California interior. The California economy

6890-481: The United States beginning in World War II. They contracted agricultural labor from Mexico due to labor shortages from the World War II draft. An estimated 4.6 million Mexican immigrants were pulled into the United States through the Bracero Program from the 1940s to the 1960s. The lack of agricultural laborers due to increases in military drafts for World War II opened up a chronic need for low-wage workers to fill jobs. While Mexican Americans are concentrated in

6996-418: The United States from Argentina. In 2015, the United States admitted 157,227 Mexican immigrants, and as of November 2016, 1.31 million Mexicans were on the waiting list to immigrate to the United States through legal means. A 2014 survey showed that 34% of Mexicans would immigrate to the United States if given the opportunity, with 17% saying they would do it illegally. Ethnically, Mexican Americans are

7102-591: The amendment referred only to racial, not "nationality", groups. Thus, since Mexican Americans were tried by juries composed of their racial group—whites—their constitutional rights were not violated. The US Supreme Court ruling in Hernandez v. Texas case held that "nationality" groups could be protected under the Fourteenth Amendment, and it became a landmark in the civil rights history of the United States. While Mexican Americans served in all-White units during World War II, many Mexican–American veterans continued to face discrimination when they arrived home; they created

7208-578: The book debuted, and in its list of "Notable Books of 2015". The novel also made it onto numerous other "Books of the Year" lists, including those of The Guardian , The Wall Street Journal , and The Washington Post . Viet's second novel, The Committed , which continues the story of The Sympathizer , was published in 2021. Viet's short fiction has been published in Best New American Voices 2007 ("A Correct Life"), Manoa ("Better Homes and Gardens"), Narrative Magazine ("Someone Else Besides You", "Arthur Arellano", and "Fatherland", which

7314-402: The book depicts. An unnamed ghostwriter takes up a job to write a memoir about Victor, a man who is stricken with survivor guilt . Living with her mother, the ghostwriter often listens to her mother's ghost stories about people she knew in her past; one of the recurring stories regards her deceased older brother. One night while writing, the ghostwriter is visited by her brother's ghost. After

7420-585: The century put many Mexican Americans out of work in addition to people of other ethnic groups. Their industrial skills were not as useful in the changing economies of these areas. The Delano grape strike was influenced by the Filipino-American farm worker strike in Coachella Valley, May 1965. Migrant Filipino-American workers asked for a $ 0.15/hour raise. The 1965 Delano grape strike , sparked by mostly Filipino American farmworkers, became an intersectional struggle when labor leaders and voting rights and civil rights activists Dolores Huerta , founder of

7526-445: The creation of the Bear Flag Republic . On July 9, US military forces reached Sonoma; they lowered the Bear Flag Republic's flag, replacing it with a US flag. Californios organized an army to defend themselves from invading American forces after the Mexican army retreated from Alta California to defend other parts of Mexico. The Californios defeated an American force in Los Angeles on September 30, 1846. In turn, they were defeated after

7632-602: The early 21st century, the states with the largest percentages and populations of Mexican Americans are California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Colorado, Nevada and Utah. There have also been markedly increasing populations in Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and Illinois. In terms of religion, Mexican Americans are primarily Roman Catholic , which was largely established in culture during the Spanish and Mexican periods. A large minority are Evangelical Protestants . Notably, according to

7738-709: The early-to-middle 19th century differentiate themselves culturally from the population of Mexican Americans whose ancestors arrived in the American Southwest after the Mexican Revolution . The number of Mexican immigrants in the United States has sharply risen in recent decades. In 1900, there were slightly more than 500,000 Hispanics of Mexican descent living in New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, California, and Texas. Most were Mestizo Mexican Americans of Spanish and Indigenous descent, Spanish settlers, other Hispanicized European settlers who settled in

7844-592: The effect Texas independence had on the Tejano community: A native of San Antonio, Juan Seguín is probably the most famous Tejano to be involved in the War of Texas Independence. His story is complex because he joined the Anglo rebels and helped defeat the Mexican forces of Santa Anna. But later on, as Mayor of San Antonio, he and other Tejano felt the hostile encroachments of the growing Anglo power against them. After receiving

7950-408: The family experiences a home invasion but precautions are taken by his mother, and the aggressor's inexperience results in minimal injuries and little theft. During church that same week, they run into Mrs. Hoa who says that she will visit their shop next week and will expect a donation. His mother takes this chance to surreptitiously follow Mrs. Hoa home to learn of her address. Mrs. Hoa visits them

8056-512: The family. When she is alone with Phuong she confesses that she does not feel close with her father. During their visit to an amusement park the next day, the two share a pod on a Ferris wheel where Phuong tells Vivien she wants to be like her: self-sufficient and independent. Upon hearing this, Vivien then makes her ultimate confession: she is not a doctor at all; she is actually a former receptionist who has used her severance pay for this vacation. She also tries to absolve herself by saying that it

8162-466: The father of the unborn child is, but Sam does not answer and tells him not to come back. Thomas's father slashes Sam's car's tires and hurls a boulder at the windshield before they slyly leave the neighborhood. When they return home, Thomas then helps his father to bed before falling asleep himself. A few days later, Sam confronts him regarding damages to her car; Thomas offers her an envelope filled with money without revealing that his father did it. After

8268-485: The federal government and not as a separate race in the census, lower courts held that they were not being denied equal protection by being tried by juries that excluded Mexican Americans by practice. The lower court ruled there was no violation of the Fourteenth Amendment by excluding people with Mexican ancestry among the juries. Attorneys for the state of Texas and judges in the state courts contended that

8374-480: The following week demanding "they do their part," but his mother again refuses, calling her an extortionist. Mrs. Hoa reluctantly leaves, and his father reminds his mother again their this act could doom their business. Realizing this to be true, he and his mother travel to Mrs. Hoa house after closing hours, seeking a compromise as well as an apology. When they arrive, they are greeted by a surprised Mrs. Hoa who welcomes them into her house upon insistence. Inside they see

8480-617: The goods alone, he dishearteningly returns home. When he sees Norma, he offers her an embrace, but she instead folds her arms. Mrs. Khanh and her recently retired husband who has Alzheimer's disease live in Westminster, California . During one of their outings at a wedding, she notices that he calls her "Yen," which drives her to think why "Yen" is so important to her husband. The morning after, she cooks breakfast for her visit son Vinh, who gives her advice on how to help stimulate her husband's mind and encourages her to retire from her job as

8586-496: The growing importance of the Mexican American vote. The struggle of presidents of both Democratic and Republican administrations to solve immigration reform in the United States has led in part to an increased polarization in the nation over an increasingly diverse population. Mexican Americans have increasingly settled in areas other than traditional centers in the Southwest and Chicago. Most Mexican Roma came to

8692-587: The increasing volume of Anglo-American immigration and restricted the number of settlers from the United States allowed to enter Texas. Consistent with its abolition of slavery, the Mexican government banned slavery within the state, which angered American slave owners. The American settlers, along with many of the Tejano, rebelled against the centralized authority of Mexico City and the Santa Anna regime, while other Tejano remained loyal to Mexico, and still others were neutral. Author John P. Schmal wrote of

8798-667: The international stage — and the talent to give us inroads toward understanding it." Reviewing the collection for The New Yorker , writer Joyce Carol Oates said though these stories are less "stylized and experimental" than Nguyen's novel The Sympathizer (published in 2016, but written after many of the stories in this collection), all of his "fiction is pervaded by a shared intensity of vision, by stinging perceptions that drift like windblown ashes." Aram Mrjoian, for The Chicago Review of Books , said that "The stories themselves are expansive and well paced; each one builds steadily and confidently. For some, eight stories may seem like

8904-553: The key problem that Mexican Americans face, highlighting the need for stronger community and political organization. Since there were not many job opportunities in their country, Mexicans moved to the United States to gain work. They often had to settle for low-paying jobs, including as agricultural workers. During this period, civil rights groups such as the National Mexican-American Anti-Defamation Committee were founded. By

9010-598: The last man to defend it. After three days of tension, Fremont retreated to Oregon without a shot being fired. With relations between Californios and Americans quickly souring, Fremont returned to Alta California, where he encouraged European-American settlers to seize a group of Castro's soldiers and their horses. Another group seized the Presidio of Sonoma and captured Mariano Vallejo. The Americans chose William B. Ide as Commander in Chief and on July 5, 1846, he proclaimed

9116-465: The limited space in their home, he sometimes stays at Louis's place. During one of the stay-overs, Arthur tells Louis about how his brother Martín runs the family landscaping business his father started and Louis tells him about his philosophy regarding the counterfeit business. When he returns home for clean underwear, Norma informs him that a man named Minh Vu called him while he was away. After calling Minh back and listening to him, Arthur learns that Minh

9222-509: The over 60 indigenous groups in Mexico (approximately 200,000 people in California alone). It is estimated that approximately 10% of the current Mexican-American population are descended from residents of the Spanish Empire and later Mexico, which preceded the acquisition of their territories by the United States ; such groups include New Mexican Hispanos , Tejanos of Texas, and Californios . They became US citizens in 1848 through

9328-542: The pirate. In retaliation, the pirate struck him in the head with his rifle, killing him. Before he disappears, he tells her "You died too, you just don't know it." Before sending in Victor's memoir, she remembers a conversation with him about ghosts; he says he believes in ghosts, that their aura has helped him through his loss. After the book is published, the ghostwriter decides to write her own work about ghosts. She talks to her mother for inspiration, and her mother tells her

9434-455: The song " I'd Love You to Want Me " which plays at the wedding and causes him to call her "Yen." James Carver, a retired African-American USAF pilot during the Vietnam War, and his wife Michiko, visit their daughter Claire and her boyfriend Legaspi, a roboticist, in Quảng Trị . Carver is apathetic as he did not care much for the country during his war years which leads him to clash with Claire,

9540-423: The states of New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Arizona and California. Although the treaty promised that the landowners in this newly acquired territory would have their property rights preserved and protected as if they were citizens of the United States, many former citizens of Mexico lost their land in lawsuits before state and federal courts over terms of land grants, or as a result of legislation passed after

9646-491: The store, the boy is unsure of what he wants to buy. Arthur Arellano, a middle-aged Mexican-American living in Orange County , stores a boatload of counterfeit goods in his garage as a favor for Louis Vu. About eighteen months prior when Arthur was suffering from liver failure, he was told he only has a short time to live. However, in that terminal period, a donor, Louis's father Men Vu, is matched with Arthur and after

9752-658: The story of how a man imprisoned for thirty years "meets" his lost wife through ghosts after his release. She also notes that the ghostwriter's brother will not appear again, as he has made his peace with this world. The title comes from how the ghostwriter admires the elderly, "black-eyed women" in Vietnam who told ghost stories to passersby. Liem, an eighteen-year-old refugee, arrives at the San Francisco International Airport and meets his sponsor Parrish Coyne and Marcus Chan, Parrish's lover. After trading greetings, they drive him to their house in

9858-534: The three of them share a fleeting moment together. When not attending enrichment summer school, an unnamed boy, works at his parents' convenience store in a Vietnamese enclave in San Jose . The boy is potentially an analog to the author, who speaks of a similar store. He gets a small allowance for his work which he uses to buy comic books and games. One day, Mrs. Hoa enters their store demanding that they contribute money to fighting communism in Vietnam; she says that

9964-408: The treaty. Even those statutes which Congress passed to protect the owners of property at the time of the extension of the United States' borders, such as the 1851 California Land Act, had the effect of dispossessing Californio owners. They were ruined by the cost over years of having to maintain litigation to support their land titles. Following the concession of California to the United States under

10070-413: The word has changed through time, and in the early 21st century, it is used to refer to the segment of the Mexican population who are of at least partial Indigenous ancestry, but do not speak Indigenous languages . Thus in Mexico, the term "Mestizo", while still applying mostly to people who are of mixed European and Indigenous descent, to various degrees, has become more of a cultural label rather than

10176-422: The words are superficial. When Liem receives a reply from his father, he is at first reluctant to read it, even at Marcus's insistence. A little later, they have sex . Afterward, when Marcus is asleep, Liem answers a short phone call from Parrish before reading the reply from his father, who asks him to "live a correct life." From behind one of the house windows, he catches sight of two men. They turn to face him and

10282-467: The writings of colonial Tejanos such as Antonio Menchaca , the Texas Revolution was initially a colonial Tejano cause. Mexico encouraged immigration from the United States to settle east Texas and, by 1831, English-speaking settlers outnumbered Tejanos ten to one in the region. Both groups were settled mostly in the eastern part of the territory. The Mexican government became concerned about

10388-632: Was a prize winner in the 2011 Winter Fiction Contest), TriQuarterly ("The War Years" - Issue 135/136), The Good Men Project ("Look At Me"), the Chicago Tribune ("The Americans", also a 2010 Nelson Algren Short Story Awards finalist), and Gulf Coast , where his story won the 2007 Fiction Prize. In May 2008, Viet is one of the contributing authors of A Stranger Among Us: Stories of Cross-Cultural Collision and Connection published by OV Books, Other Voices, Inc. In February 2017, Viet continued to collaborate with Grove Press to publish

10494-567: Was awarded a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship , and a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2017. Viet is a regular contributor, op-ed columnist for The New York Times , covering immigration, refugees, politics, culture, and Southeast Asia. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences , and in 2020 was elected as the first Asian American member of the Pulitzer Prize Board in its 103-year-history. Viet

10600-423: Was based on agriculture and livestock. In contrast to central New Spain, coastal colonists found little mineral wealth. Some became farmers or ranchers, working for themselves on their own land or for other colonists. Government officials, priests, soldiers, and artisans settled in towns, missions, and presidios. One of the most important events in the history of Mexican settlers in California occurred in 1833, when

10706-489: Was born in Ban Mê Thuột , South Vietnam in 1971. He was the son of Linda Thanh Nguyen and Joseph Thanh Nguyen, refugees from North Vietnam who had moved south in 1954. Viet's mother's real name is Nguyễn Thị Bảy and she is a highly influential person in his life. In an excerpt from his book A Man of Two Faces: A Memoir, A History, A Memorial , Viet writes: "People like Má who will not be remembered by History are also

10812-493: Was her mother, a serial liar, who told their father of her facade of success. Phuong asks Vivien if she could sponsor her to the United States, at which point Vivien reveals that she is also drowning in credit card debt. When the family receives a letter and photographs from Vivien a month later, Phuong reacts bitterly; she secretly burns her portion of the pictures, knowing the truth about Vivien. The Refugees received widely favorable reviews. Kirkus Reviews stated that "Nguyen

10918-543: Was much more common during the repatriations than formal deportation. According to legal professor Kevin R. Johnson, the repatriation campaign was based on ethnicity and meets the modern legal standards of ethnic cleansing , because it frequently ignored individuals' citizenship. The second period of increased migration is known as the Bracero Era from 1942 to 1964. This referred to the Bracero program implemented by

11024-432: Was not sure about having children with her. They decide to pay a surprise visit to Sam, who lives across town. They find her pregnant, and she invites them inside her home. After discussing their respective lives, she reveals that she went to Vietnam last summer after the divorce. She encourages them to also take such vacations, but Thomas's father swears that such a visit would do him no good. Before leaving, Thomas asks who

11130-871: Was published in 2015 by the Grove Press /Atlantic. The Sympathizer won the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. The Sympathizer further won the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize , the Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction from the American Library Association , and the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature in Fiction from the Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association . The book additionally won

11236-708: Was the Nguyen family's next destination, where his parents opened a Vietnamese grocery store called SàiGòn Mới, one of the first of its kind in the area. On Christmas Eve , when Viet was nine years old, his parents survived being shot during a robbery at their store. When he was 16, a gunman broke into the family's house and threatened them. Viet's mother ran into the street screaming for help and saved everyone's lives. Seven years after arriving in America, Viet's older brother, Tung Thanh Nguyen (Nguyễn Thanh Tùng), whom he calls "the original refugee success story", entered Harvard University . Tung graduated four years later with

#464535