The new Vietnam: Vietnam now has one of the world's fastest-growing economies. For teens like Nguyen Song Nhi, the "American War" is ancient history.When Nguyen (nuh-WEN) Song Nhi's parents were growing up in North Vietnam North Vietnam: see Vietnam. their main image of the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. was of warplanes raining bombs from the skies. But ask 16-year-old Nhi what America means to her, and the first thing she mentions is Hollywood movie stars. It's Saturday night in Hanoi, Vietnam's capital. Nhi and her cousin Thao, 14, are waiting their turn to be photographed at the "Cute Photo Stickers" shop. For 15,000 dong--about $1--they can see their photo on a make-believe cover of Vogue Vogue leading fashion magazine in France and America. [Fr. and Amer. Culture: Misc.] See : Fashion or Seventeen. Nhi is barely familiar with these magazines, although she did flip through a copy of Seventeen once. She wasn't impressed. "American girls American Girl, may refer to:
The "American War" The photo shop is near the spot where Navy pilot John McCain For McCain's grandfather and father, see John S. McCain, Sr. and John S. McCain, Jr., respectively John Sidney McCain III (born August 29, 1936 in Panama Canal Zone) is an American politician, war veteran, and currently the Republican Senior U.S. Senator from Arizona. , now a U.S. Senator, was shot down during the Vietnam War Vietnam War, conflict in Southeast Asia, primarily fought in South Vietnam between government forces aided by the United States and guerrilla forces aided by North Vietnam. . McCain spent more than five years in prisoner-of-war (POW) camps, where he and other American POWs were tortured. "No one really thinks about the war much now," Nhi says. Her father, now 43, was too young to fight the Americans. However, he later served in the Vietnamese Army, as all young men are still required to do. What is referred to as the "American War" is taught in schools. But for Nhi and other young people in Vietnam, the war might as well have been centuries ago. Some 60 percent of the population was born after the war ended in 1975, with a Communist victory. These days, there are other things to think about. Clothes, for instance--and the future. Nhi dreams of becoming a flight attendant. After graduating from high school, she hopes to pass college-entrance exams and study foreign languages for a career in world travel. It's a lofty dream. Only one in five Vietnamese students who apply gets a university spot. Plus, applicants for prestigious jobs in state-owned companies, such as Vietnam Airlines Vietnam Airlines (Vietnamese: Tổng Công ty Hàng không Việt Nam) is the national flag carrier of Vietnam, and was established as a state enterprise in April 1989. , often have to pay bribes to get hired. Nevertheless, the future for Vietnamese teens is brighter today than at any time in the last 50 years. Struggle for Control U.S. military involvement in Vietnam began in the early 1950s. In 1965, the U.S. sent combat troops to help South Vietnam South Vietnam: see Vietnam. defend itself from attacks by Vietcong guerrillas, who were supported by Communist North Vietnam. By 1969, more than 500,000 U.S. troops were fighting alongside South Vietnamese forces. The war, in which 58,000 U.S. troops died and some 300,000 were wounded, became increasingly unpopular in the U.S. U.S. forces withdrew from Vietnam in 1973. Two years later, the North defeated the South, unifying all of Vietnam under Communist rule. Hundreds of thousands of South Vietnamese fled to other countries, including the U.S. Many of those who stayed in Vietnam were sent to "re-education camps," where they endured forced labor and long lectures about Communism. The Communist government banned most private businesses and forced farmers to join collective farms. For years, Vietnam suffered from crushing poverty. People had to stand in long lines In communications, circuits that are capable of handling transmissions over long distances. at government stores to buy what they wanted. Vietnamese who lived through those times describe how a bar of perfumed soap would be hoarded as a luxury. American goods were rare because the U.S. imposed an economic embargo embargo (ĕmbär`gō), prohibition by a country of the departure of ships or certain types of goods from its ports. Instances of confining all domestic ships to port are rare, and the Embargo Act of 1807 is the sole example of this in on Vietnam after the war. The New Vietnam By 1986, Vietnam was so impoverished that the Communist government decided to change course. The government permitted limited private businesses. Small restaurants and cafes started opening. Collective farms were broken up, and farmers were given long-term leases to land. Other countries were encouraged to invest in Vietnamese businesses. In 1994, the U.S. lifted its trade embargo, and re-established diplomatic relations the following year. In 2000, Bill Clinton became the first U.S. President to visit Vietnam after the war. President George W. Bush visited last November. In the past decade, Vietnam has been transformed. Poverty has been cut in half. While most people earn less than $1,000 a year, in the cities of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon, city (1997 pop. 5,250,000), on the right bank of the Saigon River, a tributary of the Dong Nai, Vietnam. (formerly Saigon), people earn more--and spend it on consumer goods consumer goods Any tangible commodity purchased by households to satisfy their wants and needs. Consumer goods may be durable or nondurable. Durable goods (e.g., autos, furniture, and appliances) have a significant life span, often defined as three years or more, and like motorbikes and cell phones (see map, p. 13). Nhi drives a red Honda motorbike that her parents gave her. Thao has a similar motorbike, and a cell phone. "We Study the Whole Day" In Vietnam, the school day lasts from 7 a.m. to noon, Monday through Saturday, with classes in math, literature, science, history, geography, and civics civics, branch of learning that treats of the relationship between citizens and their society and state, originally called civil government. With the large immigration into the United States in the latter half of the 19th cent. . Like most students, Nhi and Thao take extra private tutorials in the afternoon. "Basically, we study the whole day," says Thao. After school, Nhi and Thao sometimes help in the watch-repair shop that their parents own together. They also spend time online. Thao has a blog, and instant-messages her friends all the time. "I don't really think at all about politics," Thao says. That sort of attitude is encouraged by the ruling Communist Party Communist party, in China Communist party, in China, ruling party of the world's most populous nation since 1949 and most important Communist party in the world since the disintegration of the USSR in 1991. . As in neighboring neigh·bor n. 1. One who lives near or next to another. 2. A person, place, or thing adjacent to or located near another. 3. A fellow human. 4. Used as a form of familiar address. v. China, Vietnam has stopped trying to control every aspect of people's lives. But anyone who opposes the Vietnamese government is dealt with severely. At least a dozen people who criticized the government online have been jailed in the past few years. Most evenings, the girls spend their free time meeting friends and shopping at Hanoi's two new air-conditioned malls. For now, Vietnam has almost no big chain stores, but that could change soon. Vietnam is about to join the World Trade Organization, which will further open the country to foreign companies. The only time Nhi is reminded of the old Vietnam is when her parents balk balk the action of a horse when it refuses to obey a command to which it usually responds. See also jibbing. at giving her money for something fun. "They say that when they were teenagers, life wasn't as good as it is for us now," Nhi says. "They suffered through many hardships." She pauses. "They scold SCOLD. A woman who by her habit of scolding becomes a nuisance to the neighborhood, is called a common scold. Vide Common Scold. us like that--but they still give us money." This article originally appeared in the January 15, 2007, issue of The New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of Times Up front. Words to Know * collective farm: a farm operated by a group or by the government. Usually, the farmers are paid a share of the profits. * Communist: a government or economy based on government ownership of land and businesses. The Communist Party typically allows no opposition. * embargo: a government order that imposes a trade barrier. * Vietcong: Communist guerrilla fighters who opposed the South Vietnamese government forces and U.S. military during the Vietnam War. Think About It 1. Why did the U.S. send troops to fight in Vietnam? 2. What changes led to Vietnam's prosperity today? * Objectives Students should be able to: * understand how life in Vietnam has changed since the end of the war. * recognize that Americans' memories and impressions of the war may differ from those of the Vietnamese. * Background Vietnam was a colony of France until 1954, when the French were driven out by a war of independence. The 1954 Geneva Accords
* Critical Thinking COMPREHENSION: How has Vietnam changed since the end of the war? (Communist control over farming and business has eased; the economy has improved; more teens are attending school; other answers acceptable.) MAKING INFERENCES: What are some advantages and disadvantages of the large amount of time Nhi and Thao spend studying? Would U.S. kids be better off if they had similar schedules? Explain. (Answers will vary.) * Activity WHAT'S YOUR ANGLE? Ask: What impressions do you have of the Vietnam War? How do these impressions compare with those of Vietnamese teens? What might account for the similarities/differences? Suggest that students interview an older relative or family friend who served in the Vietnam War and write (or play a tape of) excerpts of that oral history to share with the rest of the class. STANDARD SOCIAL STUDIES, GRADES 5-8 * Time, continuity, and change: The people of Vietnam are finding stability after the traumas of "the American War" and a harsh postwar environment. RESOURCES * Caputo, Philip, 10,000 Days of Thunder (Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster U.S. publishing company. It was founded in 1924 by Richard L. Simon (1899–1960) and M. Lincoln Schuster (1897–1970), whose initial project, the original crossword-puzzle book, was a best-seller. , 2005). Grades 5 & up. * Nhuong, Huyn Quang, The Land I Lost (HarperCollins, 1986). Grades 6 & up. WEB SITES * Vietnam Maps pbs.org/wgbh/amex /vietnam/maps * Vietnam War Chronology chronology, n the arrangement of events in a time sequence, usually from the beginning to the end of an event. www.vietnampix.com /timeline.htm Kay Johnson in Hanoi |
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