It is important to first look at the time
around the Vietnam
War to examine the film better.
This time causes the reason for the documentary. The Vietnam War began
in 1959 and ended in 1975. This was one of the most publicly open wars in
American history and thus became extremely unpopular with the American people.
The American public was able to see the war more than any other war before this
time and support for it disappeared. The negative images in the media gave rise
to much opposition by the American public.
The
documentary Daughter from Danang
begins by describing “Operation Babylift.”
This was an initiative done by the US government in 1975 to help to give homes
to the vast amount of orphans in a war stricken Vietnam, many of which were
orphans from Vietnamese mothers and G.I. fathers. President
Gerald Ford sent 30 flights to carry passengers. The first flight
crashed killing almost half of the adults and children on board. More than 3,000
orphans were relocated from Vietnam to various other countries including the
US, England, Australia, and Canada; 2,700 of which were brought to the United
States. Some criticized the move as a
ploy to help improve public opinion about the war. Another problem is that many
of the children were not always orphans. In some cases like that of Heidi in Daughter from Danang were children of a
mother who thought they could provide a better life for their child by sending
them to the US.
Vietnam orphans flying to the United States.
First plane crash killing almost half of the orphans and adults.
Were all the infants and children orphans?
No, Vietnam parents feared for the safety of their children
at the end of the Vietnam War. Heip, also known as Heidi, was an example of a
child that was not an orphan but her mother felt she had no other option for
providing safety for her child. Heidi’s biological mother hoped Heidi would
attempt to find her in Vietnam as an adult.
Heidi and her mother reunited.
Heip was adopted by a southern family. She
grew up an American child in Tennessee. She seemed to have a good experience
despite the reputation of the south to be more intolerant of other races. She
they said she had a very Caucasian appearance.
So she grew up in the United States during the late 70s and 80s. During
this time and the United States was engaged in the Cold War and the fight
against Communism.
Now,
the time the documentary took place was either the late nineties or early two
thousands. The documentary was actually released in 2002. So the current events
around that time, include 9/11 and a time in the 1990s with much financial
prosperity for the United States. Heidi
travels to see her mother in Danang during this time that she hadn’t seen in 22
years. When she arrives in Vietnam she encounters a place much different than
the United States. The town of Danang is
very poor at this time and it is a culture that is very communal. Vietnam
became one country after the war and had a Communist influence due to the
victory of North Vietnam. At the time free speech is just becoming something
that is becoming allowed and was still restricted because of the Communist
party know as the VCP (Vietnam Communist Party).
In
the time of the 1990s and 2000s the United States and Vietnam had been
increasing diplomacy and trade with each other. This was after much unrest
between the two and the desire to not support a unified communist Vietnam by
the U.S. So during this time Vietnam was still poverty stricken but things with
U.S. were improving. The VCP also improved human rights in the country by
allowing more free religious practice and more private business by this time.
Also by this time there were improved workers’ rights in the country of
Vietnam. Some problems that were going
on in Vietnam were and in some cases still are the spread of HIV/Aids
throughout the country as well as a large human trafficking network. The
Vietnamese also had to deal with the destruction many years after the war done
by the dangerous chemical Agent Orange.
For more events during the Vietnam War, follow the link below.
For 2012 current events in Danang, follow the link below.
References
Brigham,
R.K. Hoffman, E.K. Battlefield Vietnam:
A Brief History. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/battlefieldvietnam/history/index.html.
Dolgin,
G. Franco, V. (2002). Daughter from Danang. Retrieved from http://www.daughterfromdanang.com/about/.
Manyin,
M. E. (May 18 2012). U.S.-Vietnam Relations in 2011: Current Issues
and
Implications for U.S. Policy. Retrieved from http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/R40208.pdf.
PBS.
Precious Cargo. The Story. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/itvs/preciouscargo/story.html.
Mai Thi Heip, also known as Heidi was born to an American soldier. Her mother, Mai Thi Kim was working on the military base where she met Heidi’s father. Heidi was sent to the United States and placed in a foster home, which was run by an adoption agency. Heidi was later adopted and landed in Tennessee where she spent most of her life.
ReplyDeleteHeidi has not seen her mother in many years. She went to Vietnam to visit her mother; however, upon her arrival, she was culture shocked. I would imagine after living in the United States for several years, returning to her homeland of the poor was shocking. What is most interesting is the expectations her family requested of her, just because it was part of the culture. I have often heard of families sending money home to help take care of the family; however, I thought it was out of kindness, not an expectation. What is even more disturbing is the fact that they continued to contact her after she returned to United States. I do not believe she has any moral obligation to the culture of Vietnam, thus her reasoning for not responding to the request.
My father escaped Hungary during the 1956 uprising against the Russian occupation. After he found his way to America, he eventually contacted his family left behind. They were angry and disappointed that he did not send money back to them to help them advance their financial position. They were by no means poor, but they certainly had to live within the restrictions of a communist regime. The expectations and perceptions of America is that we have money to burn. Let's face it, no matter how much we complain, we don't have to take baths in wash basins or go hungry because our personal garden did not produce a good harvest. This movie showed how sheltered we are in this country. No wonder so many countries resent us.
DeleteHonestly, if someone in my immediate family was struggling financially, I wouldn't hesitate to help them out. Nor would I be offended if they asked me for money. Though there would be the underlying assumption that they would at least try to pay me back if/when they bounced back. But I grew up with my family and have known them my entire life (or their entire life in the case of my siblings). I feel like that is where the big difference is. Many families in America are very close and would be willing to help each other out. But I think we define "family" as those we grew up with and share a very close relationship with. Though the people in Vietnam were Heidi's biological family, to her, they were not her "real" family. Not yet at least. She didn't know them at all which is why she did not feel the immediate obligation of caring for them financially. Possibly, if she would've gotten the chance to really get to know them and developed a relationship with them, then she wouldn't have been as opposed to helping them out.
Delete-Nicole Eshelman
As a child of adoption, I agree with your description of the differences on display in this film. For instance, when I speak of my parents, I am referring to my adoptive parents. I do have a relationship with my biological mother and family now, but to me family means the ones that were there when I had a school choir, or a basketball game. They were the ones who wiped away my tears and changed my diapers. Family requires presence and time from its members; in my case, there is no substitute for familiarity that only comes from being together. As I have been learning since meeting my bio family, it takes years to develop the closeness, and even then I still sometimes feel like a foreigner at family functions, the relationships are slowly developing. - Jeremiah Yoder
DeleteThat picture of the plane with all the infants was really eye opening....Like Heidi, there were others who thought that America would be a safer place for their children. I don't know that much about what each US president was typically "known" for. However, reading and watching about Ford's efforts gave me new knowledge of his presidency. What a great EFFORT put forth by him to save thousands of lives and aid those who were suffering.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/geraldford
Above is a link providing more information about what Ford accomplished through his time as a president.
I really agree with you in that the picture of the infants was really moving in a way. It was hard to believe there were that many infant babies. But like you said President Ford put in tons of time and effort in order to save these children's lives. And also thanks for providing the link to gain further info about Ford!
Delete-Michael Chack
I like the pictures given of the crashed plane and the infants being transported to the United States. These pictures really gave me a visual and were an eye opener that so many infants were without parents. I feel that many people from third world countries would do anything to live in the United States and have a better life so I can definitely understand the parent's decisions of those children that were not orphans but on the other hand I could not imagine giving up my own child.
ReplyDeleteTerry Rosenberg
I really like that you included the pictures to go alone with your explanation of the events. Often it is easy to downplay an event if you do not have a visual. However, the picture of the orphans being sent over was really eye-opening. I can't imagine being on a plane with that many babies!
ReplyDeleteI agree visuals provides a greater impact of the message. I too could not imagine being on a plane full of babies. I have to give it to the adults that had to deal with that for a whole plane ride.
DeleteFrank,
ReplyDeleteVery informative post on the issues surrounding this film. I learned some things I had not previously known. I do have an observation though. You mentioned this film was released in 2002. You also said events going on at this time would have been 9/11. This is true, as this occurred in 2001. I guess I was just shocked at how much the camera crews were allowed in the airports and on the plane as well if this was post 9/11? They must have filmed this prior to the attacks and done the editing and whatnot after 9/11. I just cannot believe they would have allowed such commotion going on in the airports and the planes this close after 9/11. I thought of this while I watched the film too. Do you have any indication of when this was actually filmed?
This was a very well written up blog! I really liked how you incorporated pictures into it. This really got my attention. Also, you provided many facts that I didn't know about this film which was very helpful
ReplyDelete-Michael Chack
This blog was very well written. I think it is awful that people have to make sacrifices like this, but this the reality of the world. I learned a lot about this situation and even about my stance on it.
ReplyDeleteI also really liked that you posted pictures of the plane crash and the babies that were being transported. It really helped to make a better connection to the film and the people who were affected by the events in this time period.
ReplyDelete