.Vietnam and Vietnamese Americans after 1975
1975
VIETNAM The new Communist regime begins rounding up former political officials and military personnel tied to the South Vietnamese government. They are sent to re-education camps, where they are “re-educated” in Communist ideology and forced into hard labor. Later, intellectuals, writers, religious leaders and leaders of ethnic minority groups are interned. Most are imprisoned on average in re-education camps for 4 to 8 years. Some are incarcerated for as long as 17 years.
VIETNAMESE IN AMERICAPresident Gerald Ford signs the Indochina Migration and Refugee Act, admitting 130,000 Southeast Asian refugees into the U.S. Of this cap, almost 120,000 are Vietnamese, with Cambodians comprising the remainder. Refugees first stay in Guam, Wake Island, or the Philippines, and then arrive in the U.S. at four relocation camps: Camp Pendleton, California; Fort Chaffee, Arkansas; Eglin Air Force Base, Florida; and Fort Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania
1976
VIETNAMS@i Gjn, the capital of the fallen Republic of Viet Nam, is renamed Hn Chí Minh City, to commemorate the father of Vietnamese Communism. However, many residents continue to call the city by its original name. H@ Npi becomes the seat of government of the new Socialist Republic of Viet Nam.
The 4th Party Congress calls for rapid socialization in the southern economy, with mass relocation of people and forced collectivization of agriculture, small industry and commerce. This leads to an economic disaster, provoking new waves of refugees.
1977
VIETNAM The U.S. continues its embargo on Viet Nam, and the nation was isolated from most of the non-Communist world, which meant little aid and investment.
A steady stream of Vietnamese were escaping Viet Nam to other Southeast Asian countries at about 2,000 refugees per month, starting the “Second Wave” of Vietnamese refugees.
Prime Minister Pham Vãn Dnng issues Resolution 297 to forbid the “spread of superstitions,” by severely restricting religious practices in Viet Nam and allowing the government to confiscate church properties. This is one of the first among a list of government actions in the next 25 years to restrict religious freedom in Viet Nam.
VIETNAMESE IN AMERICA Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA) sponsors a bill to change a refugee from a parolee to a permanent resident. This is called the 1977 Adjustment of Status Clause and is added to the 1975 Indochina Migration and Refugee Act. Prior to this amendment, the McCarren-Walter Act of 1952 indicated that a parolee’s stay is temporary.
