By AMELIE YOUNG
Vietnamese roots run deep in Washington state history and culture. Starting in 1975 with only 500 Vietnamese refugees to over 55,000 Vietnamese people in King County today, Vietnamese is the fourth most spoken language in Seattle. To honor these journeys, stories and history, the Washington State Historical Museum has an exhibit called, Our Voices: Stories from Washington’s Southeast Asian Refugees. The exhibit walks through the state’s history of opening up programs and support for hundreds of refugee families. Although there is so much more history not depicted in this exhibit, it does an amazing job highlighting some of the experiences that occurred over the last 50 years.
The exhibit displays photos and artwork from throughout the years, along with current stories from the Legacy Washington archives. In 2008, Legacy Washington became an established program of the Washington Secretary of State and was crucial to the creation of this exhibit. They gather stories from government officials and local Washingtonians. They collaborated with the Washington State Historical Museum because they were both struggling with finding funding, but by working together, were able to successfully commemorate the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War.
Ed Echtle, a historian and author, has an active role in Legacy Washington. He helped collect different generations and different perspectives from Washington’s Vietnamese community so people could share their stories of why they left and how they got to the U.S. They share emotional stories of bombs going off outside their houses, being afraid of communist soldiers and being targeted due to their identity, jobs, or values. Many families in the exhibit tell stories about their transition to the U.S. and how it changed their lives. One of the first camps that was set up was in Washington, called Camp Murray. The government helped find host families and create jobs to help the refugees find their footing. There were also classes to help teach English and how to learn more about what life would look like in the United States. The Salvation Army gathered clothes and other necessities to be given out at Camp Murray. Refugees were able to get support so that they could start their own farms, businesses, or education.
The spotlighted stories share journeys from Washington’s past to present. “I think one of my biggest life lessons is that you know if we want to see and hear the history that is most important to us, sometimes we can’t wait for somebody to bring it to us,” said Echtle. A particularly transformative story is of My-Linh Thai, a 15-year-old refugee at the time, who came to the U.S. not being able to speak English and who is now the 41st District Representative for Washington. She is the first Southeast Asian refugee to be in the Washington State Legislature and was one of the first people to contribute stories and connections for the exhibit. Another story was that of a couple, Phuoc Huynh and Minh Chanh, who opened two Vietnamese restaurants in Seattle. In the next 10 years, they were able to save up money and get visas for their family who they left in Vietnam. These are just some of the highlights that were depicted in the exhibit that show the history and progress for refugees in the state since 1975.
The exhibit brings to light stories that are not talked about or shared enough. The incredible determination that was shown to make this transition and journey to the PNW needed to be told. “Everybody’s story connects with history, you know, everybody has a part to play,” said Echtle. The Our Voices exhibition demonstrates the vivid and rich history of Washington’s Southeast Asian refugee populations.