Vietnam - A Few Impressions

Before the trip to Vietnam, I had a number of questions that I was wondering about, including what it meant that Vietnam was officially a communist country. I had done some reading, including Vietnam: Rising Dragon by Bill Hayton about contemporary Vietnam but was interested in what I would experience first hand. One can’t learn much in a 3 week trip, but I will still share a few impressions, based on experiences and conversations with some Vietnamese people.

We knew before hand that Vietnam is a one party state and no organized political opposition is allowed, yet a visitor does not experience the heavy hand of the state in daily interactions with Vietnamese. We were surprised by the amount of openness we encountered and the differing views expressed on issues from environmental protection to income/wealth inequality to the role of the Chinese in the economy. We were also surprised by the diversity of viewpoints that we found reported upon in the English language press. While organized political opposition is not tolerated, the government still has to contend with political power at the local and provincial level - it can’t always set the agenda and enforce whatever it wants as we saw in various reports in the press about contentious local issues. NGO’s like Oxfam work with people in government at various levels to move ahead on particular development issues. We did not have any conversations with Vietnamese about jailed bloggers or human rights abuses though we are aware from the Western press that such problems exist.

In the larger Vietnamese cities like Ho Chi Minh City, Danang, and Hanoi, economic development - such as new factories and big hotels for new tourists - are very evident and much of the development is financed at least in part with private money from Vietnam or China.    There is a strip of hotels along the beach in Danang (the old China Beach) where you feel like you must be in Miami or maybe Nueva Vallarta in Mexico. Working age adults increasingly go to the cities for work in factories, the hospitality industry, or selling goods on the street - while the elderly and children work on the farms in the rural areas, still doing much of the work by hand or with water buffaloes as far as we could tell as we traveled through the countryside. Housing and rental prices in the cities are high and we were told a lot of young workers live in dormitory type situations. We did not see homeless people on the street but would not be surprised if there were. Some Vietnamese people we spoke with, including some young folks, expressed concern about inequality and that the government should do more to help the poor. We did not see evidence of the kind of robust social safety net one can find in European countries with social democracy though there still is more of a family safety net than one would find in Western countries.

The impact of the wars, especially the American war, remains, though we found younger people we talked to knew little about the war and wanted to focus on the future. Many Vietnamese families were divided by the war - with members on different sides of the conflict. We heard stories about such families and how reconciliation has happened over time, but also heard that some families remain divided, including some of the South Vietnamese who fled to the US. A major legacy of the war is the ongoing impact of Agent Orange, now impacting a 4^th generation of Vietnamese children, as well as unexploded ordinance.

Vietnamese told us again and again that they hold no hatred for the American people, despite the war. We personally experienced warmth and friendliness from everyone we met. While we told almost everyone we had been active in the anti-war movement, and the older people really appreciated that, I expect we would have had just as warm a welcome if we had been vets. We experienced Vietnamese again and again as practical and well organized, flexible to respond to changing circumstances (all partly why they won the war), and experiencing joy in daily life.

It is no surprise to me that a number of Americans have chosen to live in Vietnam long term. As I said in one of my Facebook posts about Hanoi, there is something about being in Vietnam that feels like one is at home.

Malaysia and Last Day in Vietnam

[We arrived home at supper time on Friday, March 31, after a 12 hour layover in Incheon Airport, South Korea, where we were able to claim the laptop Ron had left at airport security a month before. Great to be home but I also want to finish reflections on the trip - including our week in Malaysia and then some impressions about life in Vietnam today in the next post.]

We flew from Hanoi, Vietnam, to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Wednesday, March 22. Kuala Lumpur is quite a contrast to Hanoi with dozens of skyscrapers, including the 88 story twin Petronas Towers; freeways; rapid transit lines criss-crossing the city; and many more cars than motor scooters. We had a room on the 28^th floor of a 34 story hotel looking out toward those towers. All in all, KL is an environment as different from Hanoi as anyone could imagine, at least partly reflecting the difference in economic prosperity between the 2 nations (remembering Vietnam was devastated by warfare for almost 35 of the last 75 years) To be honest, I felt more comfortable in our little street and small hotel in the old quarter of Hanoi than in the glitz of Kuala Lumpur.

We had decided to come to Malaysia initially because Ron wanted to experience a Muslim-majority Asian country and we also had the good fortune of Malaysian contacts that were made for us by Dr. Sayyid Syeed of the Islamic Society of North America. The day after we arrived, Ron and I each gave a 20 minute talk on interfaith efforts in the US to the Institute of Advanced Islamic Studies - Ron on the Israel/Palestine issue and me on opposition to Islamophobia (and other hate-based acts) in Washington State by the Faith Action Network, Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), Muslim Association of Puget Sound and others. After our talks we had a good exchange.The Institute’s Research Fellows (from a variety of nations) share a common agenda to advance tajdid hadari, or Civilizational Renewal, and particularly to support Malaysia’s pluralist society and human development. You can check the institute out at www.iais.org.my.

 

The next day we went to the International Islamic University of Malaysia, hosted by Professor Elmira Akhmetova, a Muslim Russian Tatar who brought together a group of about 3 dozen students from at least 10 different countries to engage with us after we shared a bit about our work. One student asked us to speak about the role of nonviolence in social/political change. We had brought photographs of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to share (as we did with others long the way) and talked some about his strategy for change. It was exciting to be in conversation with people from societies so different than our own but also with some similar challenges. The University, which includes degree programs in a wide range of academic studies from psychology to economics, is committed to “restoring the dynamic and progressive role of the Muslim Ummah in all branches of knowledge and intellectual discourse.” I was wishing I could sit in on a discussion between some of my Muslim colleagues in the U.S. and students and faculty from this University about the the role of Muslims in social change in pluralistic societies like ours.

We did a bit of touring in Kuala Lumpur but not as much as we had thought we would. We especially enjoyed the outstanding Museum of Islamic Art and its models of major mosques from around the world.

After 3 days in Kuala Lumpur we flew to Penang/Georgetown in northern Malaysia, where we stayed in an old shop house (originally a coffee roaster and seller) turned into a small hotel in the UNESCO World heritage part of Georgetown. (A whole lot different than Kuala Lumpur) The hotel had lots of character but was a bit odd - having to go out into our own private courtyard for the bathroom facilities. Georgetown is an intensely multicultural port town and has been since the 18^th century. On one street you feel like you are in in Delhi, India, and 2 streets over like you are in old Shanghai. Indian Hindus, Malay Muslims, Chinese Taoists, SE Asian Buddhists, (and historically Jews as well) all mixed together in a small area with winding streets and colorful shops. If you look at the strategic location on Malaysia on the map, it is no surprise that it was a key location for trade. I really enjoyed the Penang State museum highlighted all the different groups that settled in that place. Lots of fun.

We flew from Penang/Georgetown to Ho Chi Minh City for one more day before our flights back to the U.S. We had the opportunity to meet with Madame Ninh - a leading intellectual, former ambassador to the EU and member of Vietnam’s National Assembly - and several of her colleagues, for a wide-ranging exchange from the challenges in the new Trump-era and implications for US-Vietnam relations to the legacy of the war and the need for continuing people-to-people exchanges between our 2 countries. The last evening we were invited to attend a wonderful, interactive presentation on the traditional Vietnamese dress - the Ao Dai - and Vietnamese culture, music and dance. Before our flight the next day, Ron was able to connect again with Huynh Tan Mam, president of the Saigon Student Association when Ron went to Saigon in 1970, and visit a school for autistic children that Mam had started some years ago in part as a response to having two autistic children of his own.

Hanoi and Ha Long Bay

I wrote a blogpost on our time in Hanoi 4 days ago and when I went to post it, it had disappeared!  Now we have been 3 days in Malaysia (and have already posted on Facebook from here) but am finally getting back to the Hanoi part :)

We loved our 5 days in Hanoi, which included an over night excursion to Halong Bay.  I shared in a Facebook post that we were especially fond of the small street where our hotel was located in the old quarter where we had our nightly favorite cocktail at the Polite Pub and after dinner take-away dessert from the French bakery.

We were especially impressed and moved by the Women's Resistance Museum which chronicled almost a 100 years of Vietnamese  women's leadership in the struggles for independence and human rights. To mention a couple women - Madame Binh, still active at 90, who led the PRG delegation at the Paris Peace Talks in the  late 60's and early 70's; Ngo Ba Thanh, a leading lawyer activist in the South during the war; and the Buddhist nuns who chained themselves together (with the threat of self-immolation) to demand the release of political prisoners promised with the Paris Peace Agreement.   I was struck by story after story of particular Vietnamese women and their courage, creativity, and persistance in their struggle - an inspiration for us in thinking about our own commitments to the work that is needed in the US today.

On another day we visited the Temple of Literature, begun over thousand years ago as a Confucian university.  While I was walking around, Ron sat down and was soon engaged in a lively discussion with about a dozen Vietnamese high school students on a wide range of topics from protest to Trump to music. About a half hour later, their group leader came to collect them. The Museum of Fine Arts was conveniently located across the street.  We particularly enjoyed the contemporary art, including some paintings addressing issues such as environmental degradation.  There were many pieces that portrayed dimensions of war in Vietnam from WW II through the American war.

We also saw a performance of one of Hanoi's reknown water puppet theater groups.  Lots of humerous folk tales acompanied ny traditional music.  Fun! We did not make it into the mausoleum of an embalmed Ho Chi Minh (against his wishes when he was alive) though we did see it from the outside and saw the house where he spent some time.

Midway through our time in the North, we spent a delightful, 24 hours on Ha Long Bay about a 3 hour drive northest of Hanoi. Ha Long Bay is an extraordinary, UNESCO World Heritage Site with 1,969 islands - limestone, tree covered outcroppings, small mountains.
There is a major tourist industry taking  people out for 24 or 48 hours on boats fitted out with several dozen staterooms.   You get 4, 5 course meals, kayaking, swimming, and a spectacular cave tour, all while cruising among all these islands.  There are many of these boats.  We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, and our guide Qui.  We were sad to have it end.

Back in Hanoi, as in Ho Chi Minh City, part of our time was spent in meetings with representatives of various groups including the Vietnam Peace Committee, the Vietnam-USA Society and the Foundation for Peace and Development. These appointments were a time of reconnection for Ron and some of the Vietnamese we met as well an opportunity for the Vietnamese to reiterate their gratitude for the American peace movement  (which we heard again and again and found hard to accept ).  But they were also a time to talk about current US politics and to assure the Vietnamese there is much resistance to the Trump agenda. One of the people we met, Vu Xyan Hong, is a member of the National Assembly of Vietnam.  Another, 89 year old Pham Khac Lam, told us some great stories about General Giap and about Ho Chi Minh.

In a future post, I will share some brief impressions of contemporary Vietnam, based on our experiences and reading (limited as they are).

I will also post more pics from Hanoi snd Halong Bay on Facebook.

Hoi An and Hue

Early on in our trip, when we were a bit anxiously trying to negotiate a multi-stage transport to the Mekong Delta, a retired Dutch couple who had been in Vietnam 3 weeks reassured us, "Don't worry; they take care of you here - especially if you are older." Indeed we have found that to be the case.  Whether it is lifting bags on and off trains, some one offering an arm to Ron as he goes down stairs, or helping us get taxis, people are so kind to us.

After we left My Lai we took the train and then a taxi to Hoi An - a UNESCO World Heritage Site untouched by the war with lots of old buildings from its heyday as a major trading seaport in the 15th - 19th centuries.  The old town is closed to cars, making it even more atmospheric.

We stayed 3 nights at a wonderful place called Hoi An Garden Villas, with a couple 2 story buildings set around a pool and gardens.   It felt like paradise to us, and we spent our first 24 hours there without leaving except to go to the pharmacy to get throat lozenges for the cold I had acquired.  Can you imagine - $31 a night with breakfast included? (and even a complimentary dinner the first night).  They took care of us like we were their relatives. 

The second night in Hoi An was the full moon festival -  a celebration of the ancestors.  The electric lights in the old town are turned off and many lanterns and candles are lit, including floating them on the river. There were hoards of friendly people and it sort of reminded me of Day of the Dead in Mazatlan last November.  Honoring one's ancestors in Vietnam is a major impetus for family gatherings and in our discussions with Vietnamese, they have shared how such gatherings have played a major role in the process of reconciling family members divided by the war.

Our stay in Hoi An also gave us an opportunity to have lunch with Andrew Wells-Dang, an ex-pat who has been living in Vietnam over 20 years, now working for Oxfam.  We made the connection with him through a former AFSC colleague of Ron, John McAullife who has been working on US-Vietnam reconciliation since the  eatly 1970's.  We heard from Andrew about current economic and political developments in Vietnam and were able to check out some of the perceptions we had been developing through our experiences and reading.

We were sad to leave Hoi An Garden Villas, and especially our host Trang who had taken such good care of us (including taking me on the back of her motor scooter to retrieve glasses I had left at a restaurant).

On Monday, we followed the advice of some American friends who had traveled in Vietnam, and took a private car with a driver from Hoi An to Hue, making short stops at Marble Mountain and DaNang (which has had massive development in recent years and lots of fancy resorts) before traveling over Hai Van Pass.

Hue was the old imperial capital of Vietnam and the site of major battles in 1968, during the TET offensive.  (That battle was the most intense part of the 1987 Stanley Kubrick film "Full Metal Jacket").  We visited Thien Mu Pagoda and Buddhist temple, another iconic symbol in Vietnam.  Since the 1960's this place and its monks have been a source of political protest in Vietnam.  In 1963, Thich Quang Duc, a monk from this community, went to Saigon where he immolated himself to protest against the policies of South Vietnamese President Diem.   The blue Austin that transported him is on display behind the temple.  Ron vividly remembers that, inspired by Duc, an 82 year old German Jewish American Alice Herz immolated herself 2 years later in protest against the war,  and then Quaker  Norman Morrison and Catholic seminarian Roger La Porte followed.

That afternoon, I spent several hours on my own, wandering the vast area of Imperial Enclosure within the walls of the Citadel of Hue.  Except for tour groups clustered near the entrance,  I found myself sometimes out of sight of any other people and other times, just a few others.  It was fantastic.  The enclosure once had 148 buildings but after bombings in the French and American wars, only a few dozen remain, mostly magnificently restored.  I totally loved the Emperor's reading pavillon and the Queen Mother's pleasure pavillon above the lily pond.  Throne rooms have never done much for me :)

Wednesday, we took an all day trip north from Hue to Quang Tri province and the DMZ (demilitarized zone) and area just north of the DMZ, the parts of Vietnam most heavily saturated with US bombs during the war. The DMZ was north and south of the Ben Hai River, the de facto border between North and South, though the 1954 Geneva Accord intended that the river be only a provisionsal military demarcation until national elections (that never happened due to the Diem regime in the South with US support)  Our first stop was the Mine Action Center in Dong Ha where we met with its director Phu to learn about efforts to deal with the large amounts of unexploded ordinance that remain in Quang Tri province.  They are involved in major effort to map the areas and build up a database accessible to all concerned.   He said because of the huge quantities,  it is an issue of managing rather than eliminating. They do a lot of outreach and education and work cooperatively with other groups including Peace Trees started from Seattle. 

We had arranged for a knowledgeable, English-speaking  guide, Mr. Vu, to be with us for the day.  He takes lots of US vets to the DMZ and knows a huge amount about the war and Vietnamese history.  We traveled on the Ho Chi Minh trail - once a one lane road to transport supplies from North to South, walked across the Ben Hai River  on the replica of the Freedom Bridge (the original had been bombed), and ate lunch on the site of US Firebase 2, listening through our guide to a story of loss and devastation during the war  from our 63 year old cook/server. In the afternoon we visited  Vinh Moc tunnels where a whole Vietnamese fising village lived during the bombing. Quite an experience.

I will post some pics on Facebook.  Still doing this all on my phone!

Now - Thursday, we are on to Hanoi.

Vietnam Days 5-7

(In my first Vietnam post I included 4 days not 3 in case any of you need to keep track :))

Day 5-6:
From Ho Chi Minh City we took an 8 hour train ride to the bustling beach town of Nha Trang.  High rise hotels, beautiful beaches, and huge numbers of Russian tourists. Being white, rather large, European looking types, we found ourselves being addressed in Russian by a number of Vietnamese. I think Ron was hoping to find a Russian or 2 to talk to but didn't find someone willing to engage.

We had been upgraded to a 14th floor ocean view room with floor to ceiling windows in our hotel right across from the beach.  Not bad for $45 a night in a resort town. The next morning we saw
people were already swimming by 6 am.  We were out on the beach by 7:30, renting a couple loungers in the economy section (of course).  The ocean was warm and clear. We had a much needed lazy day with an early dinner at a beach restaurant and lights out at 8 pm.
Days 6 & 7:
We took the 5 am train to Quang Ngai.  (6-7 hours) The train was comfortable though the seats were a little narrow for us.   Lots of beautiful scenery - mostly bright green rice paddies dotted with white birds (perhaps  small herons), and mountains to our west.  When we got on the train at 5 am, 3 Vietnamese women across the aisle appeared to be reading bibles.  Later, with the help of a Vietnamese student using a translation app on his phone, we learned that they were Catholic nuns from the Sisters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul . They work with the poor in Hanoi.  They insisted on sharing food with us that they had brought for their 30 plus hour trip.  It was good to break bread together.

When we disembarked at Quang Ngai we were were met by another former political prisoner from the time of the American war along with his 12 year old granddaughter to help with communication.  He hosted a meeting  that afternoon with about 8 others who were part of the Association of Former Political Prisoners - mostly formalities and short speeches.  (and more flowers)

The American Friends Service Committee had a clinic in Quang Ngai during and after the war to make and fit artificial limbs for war victims which is partly why we wanted to go there. (Ron had been there in 1974 when he was the National Peace Secretary for AFSC.) We also wanted to see the memorial to the My Lai Massacre of 1968.  That massacre of  504 unarmed civilians (mostly women, children and older men) by US soldiers was not reported until almost a year later by investigative reporter Seymor Hersh with the help of some courageous GI's.  That revelation, along with the revelation about US complicity with the tiger cages and other forms of torture at Con Son Prison helped turn the tide of American opinion against the war.

Our English speaking guide at the  memorial had lost relatives in the maasacre. Her narration was straight ahead without a great deal of emotion but there was a steely strength showing her commitment to telling this story.  The massacre - which the US army tried to cover up - was photographed by an army photographer. All the photos were in display at the memorial.  Some were featured in Life magazine when the story broke.   I'll spare you the descriptions - suffice it to say the brutality was tremendous.   As I saw the photo of one young boy I thought of our grandson and I started to cry.

The question when a person visits such sites is how could any human being do this?  I think the answer lies in the process of war and the dehumanization of the Enemy that can turn many people into killers.  Some GI's tried to stop it. Others made sure the story got out.   As I read history, it seems almost every war has its atrocities.  War is the real enemy.

On the train to DaNang that afternoon we had a great, wide-ranging conversation with a Vietnamese man with great English who was guiding a group of Danish and Norwegian high school age young women.  When we asked him about his family and the war, he said his Dad managed to avoid it while one of his Dad's brothers fought for the North and three for the South.  There was obviously a lot of tension during and after the war but the brother from the North helped his brothers from the South get reduced time in the re-education camps.  Eventually they all realized their motivations that led them to choose different sides were not all that different and they are reconciled.

He said a lot of people he guides ask him what he thinks of Americans and to respond he tells this story:
A couple years ago, he signed up to guide 3, older American men who were brothers.  He met them at a hotel in DaNang and they showed him a picture of a young man, the 4th brother in the family.  He had been stationed at Chu Lai airbase during the war.   After he got off duty he would often go and play with a group of Vietnamese kids teaching them how to play baseball.  He had written back to his family how much he loved Vietnam and if it weren't for the war he would want to live there and teach sports to youth.  He was killed in combat in1968.  Almost 50 years later, his brothers came to Vietnam bringing his picture and suitcases full of sports eqipment for the children living near Chu Lai - now a commercial airport.  The guide had tea
rs in his eyes as he finished the story. 

For me, the story was a great gift on the same day we had gone to My Lai:  our human capacity to dehumanize which can lead to enormous brutality juxtaposed with our capacity for connection and compassion.

Vietnam - days 1 - 3

I had hoped to have this first post from Vietnam up before now but there have been a few snags, particularly that our only laptop on the trip was left at airport security in a ridiculous mad dash to make a connection last Thursday evening.  (It appears to have been recovered but we cannot confirm for sure until we go back through  Incheon at the end of the journey.)
SO - I am trying to do this on my phone. Crazy...

Day 1:
After arriving at our very comfortable hotel in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) about 1 AM on Friday morning we were greeted with a bouquet of flowers and a message from our main contact in Saigon - Loi.  He had been imprisoned in the tiger cages in the 1960's and  was instrumental in making them publicly known. Ron met him  in 1970 in Saigon when Ron came with a group of US student and religious leaders who joined Vietnamese students and religious leaders in protesting the war in the heart of Saigon.
After 6 or 7 hours sleep and seeing a few sites in HCMC, including the "palace" where US generals plotted war strategies with South Vietnam's dictator Thieu and his cohorts, Loi came to pick us up.  He took us to a lovely restaurant along the Saigon River where we were greeted by 3 more  men who were with Loi in the tiger cages at Con Dau Island (and also  more flowers and gifts)  The oldest was 93.  Communication was a bit challenging but that did not detract from the power of the evening.  After seeing an exhibit replicating the tiger cage experience and other tortures at Can Dao (complete with pictures of American military advisors)  I cannot imagine their suffering, but these men survived and harbor no hatred.  What was so humbling was how they wanted to honor us for our work in the anti - war movement.  It is too much...
Loi now wants us to  meet other tiger cage survivors in other cities as we travel north.  We had not planned this but how can we not?  We will, and it will be a blessing.
Day 2:
We took a 4 hour bus ride to Can Tho in the middle of the Mekong Delta.  We stayed at Green Village, a rural accommodation with 6 rustic bamboo bungalows.  Bad bed but good mosquito netting and great company at dinner - Russians to our left and Danes to our right :)  The next morning we were met at 6 am by Linh, a delightful university student who loves English  and guides tourists to help pay for his education.  We boarded a small wooden boat for a 45 minute ride down a backwater canal to the Cai Rang floating market where farmers sell their fruits and vegetables from a wide variety of old wooden boats.  The absolute highlight was a totally unique version of a fast food stop.  We pulled up to a funky wooden boat where a husband and wife were cooking.  They handed us steaming china bowls of pork, fish and rice noodle soup.  We even had a plank across the boat for a table.  So yummy and fun.  We talked to Linh pretty much non-stop for 4 hours.  He plays guitar and sings pop songs, including to us.  He loves Nottinghill and imitating Brits.  We talked some about the war and America.  We have a new friend.
The bus ride back to HCMC with lots of backed up traffic was not fun but there was wifi on the bus.
Day 3:
We visited the famous War Remnants Museum (where we ran into Maren Hinderlie, whose father and mother founded Holden Village)  The museum is a somber place and includes a section on US war crimes as well as a moving tribute to war photographers who lost their lives. The last room was a tribute to the resilence and rehabilitation of war victims of bombings, mines and Agent Orange.
At lunch we met a Norwegian who lives in the town next to where my grandparents grew up in rural Trondelag and knows the farm we visited in 2015 where my great grandmother lived.
Tonight we have dinner with Ron's Vietnamese friend Mam, who he reconnected with when he was in Vietnam in 1995. Mam was the president of the Saigon Student Association and part of the 1970 protests.
After 3 days it really does seem like we are all - as MLK said - caught in an inescapable network of mutuality.
Tomorrow we leave early for the beach town of Nha Trang where we will be for a day and 2 nights.  No meetings there, but we hear there are lots of Russians and you can bet Ron will be striking up conversations.
Sorry I cannot manage to insert pictures but will post some on Facebook. 

Why I Am Going to Vietnam

On March 1, my husband Ron and I will leave for 3 weeks in Vietnam, plus a week in Malaysia. I decided to do a blog during this trip to share experiences and reflections. This first post is quite long, I realize, but I want to share a bit about why I am making this trip. Future posts will be shorter - I promise! If you would like to receive notification of new posts, please subscribe with your email address. I will also include a link in each post to a DropBox picture album.

Several people have asked me - “Why Vietnam?”

It is true Vietnam has become a tourist destination especially for low budget travelers looking for good food, beautiful scenery, warm weather and friendly people. That might be reason enough for us to go but there are places closer to home like that.

Because of our age, some have asked, “Are you or your husband vets?” or “Did you lose someone in the war?”

Neither Ron or I served in the US military or had a close family member who did, but I guess we are vets in another sense. We are peace movement vets, people whose lives were deeply shaped by the war we call the Vietnam War and the Vietnamese call the American War. My husband worked on the national staff of the Fellowship of Reconciliation and then the American Friends Service Committee during the years 1965-75, and went to Vietnam 3 times during the war, including carrying mail between U.S. POW’s in the Hanoi and their families. He also went again in 1995 for the 50^th anniversary of the Vietnam-U.S. Friendship Society

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I’ve not been to Vietnam but am aware how much my experiences in the anti-war movement of the 60’s and 70’s shaped my adult life. My political understandings, my commitments to social justice and peace, and my life’s work over the past 50 years have their roots in my experiences of those years. And so, I have thought for decades than one day I would go to Vietnam - to experience this country and its people first hand, to honor their resilence and tenacity, to ponder complexities that may have eluded me in the past.

A little bit about my own anti-war history:

I attended the University of Washington from1966 to 70 and was very active in Lutheran Campus Ministry. At a campus ministry-organized urban plunge in December 1967 in the San Francisco Bay Area, our group attended an anti-draft protest at the Oakland Induction Center. When I came back to the UW in January 1968 I began to learn more about the war and participate in anti-war activities. Our campus pastor also happened to be the Seattle staff for Clergy and Laity Concerned about Vietnam (CALCAV, later CALC), an interfaith, anti-Vietnam war organization. After graduating in 1970 I joined the Seattle chapter of CALCAV. A group of us went to a national strategy meeting in January 1972 and came back to Seattle with a commitment to show the new Automated Air War slide show in 50 congregations - and we did it!

That fall, when I moved to Berkeley so my former husband could attend seminary, I started working with the Ecumenical Peace Institute, the local chapter of CALCAV, organizing faith-based opposition to the U.S. role in the war. We became part of a national campaign to pressure the Honeywell Corporation to stop producing anti-personnel weapons - buying individual shares of Honeywell stock and attending the shareholders meeting in Minnepolis in 1973. We hosted speaking tours for Vietnamese opposed to U.S. involvement in the war and celebrated Vietnamese culture.

From the perspective of a 20-something year-old, it seemed to me like the war in Vietnam would never end. But it did, on April 30, 1975. I joined others in celebration, first in Berkeley at the Starry Plough Bar and then the next month in Central Park at the War Is Over rally

For many of my generation, what we had learned and experienced during the Vietnam War years profoundly changed our understanding about our nation and its role in the world from wide-eyed idealism of the Kennedy years to seeing the U.S. as a neo-colonial power, motivated by the Cold War to advance its global agenda at the expense of liberation movements around the globe.

As I remember it, that was my analysis in the 1970’s. My thinking about the U.S. role in the world has continued to evolve, and spending 3 years living in the Middle East in the early 1980’s meeting with Arabs and Israelis did a lot to give me a more nuanced understanding, seeing the positive’s of the U.S. impact as well as negatives.

Nonetheless, the Vietnam era was seminal for me.

And so I want to go to Vietnam, in part to remember and honor the past and sacrifices of many - including our U.S. soldiers, but also to learn, to connect and to enjoy the place and its people today.

When we are in Vietnam we will be meeting with some people who continue to address the ways the war is not yet over including unexploded land mines and the effects of Agent Orange, and others involved in human rights work. We will also be seeing many sites along the way.

The last week in Southeast Asia we will travel to Malaysia, a Muslim-majority country where we will visit the International Islamic Uninversity in Kuala Lumpur meet some people we have been in touch with through Muslim colleagues here in the U.S.