Kupanaha: Hōʻuluʻulu Manaʻo ma ka KauaʻAmelika

ʻO

I ka makahiki 1974, ua pepehi ʻia kuʻu kaikuaʻana ʻo Nhi e kahi pōkā napalm: Makemake e lanakila i ka wahine guerrilla o ka National Liberation Front (NLF), ua hoʻokuʻu ka ARVN i ka napalm ma nā ʻaoʻao ʻelua, hoʻonāukiuki i nā poʻe āpau, me koʻu kaikaina hoʻi. I ka hiki ʻana mai o koʻu makuahine e ʻohiʻohi i nā koena o Nhi, ʻike wale ʻia e kāna mau niho.

Ma hope o ke kaua, ua noho au ma ka US no ke kula puka kula. Eʻehā o koʻu mau kaikaina a me ko lāua mauʻohana i hele mai i ka US ma ka moku i waena o 1975 a me 1981.

Ma ke ʻano he haumana kiʻekiʻe ma Gia Định Province, ua loaʻa iaʻu kahi US Agency for International Development Scholarship e aʻo ma ke Kulanui Mokuʻāina ʻo San Jose ma 1968. I koʻu hōʻea ʻana i Kaleponi, ua kākoʻo mua wau akā ua kūʻē koke wau i ke kaua ma hope o ke aʻo ʻana i ka moʻaukala Vietnamese a me ka heluhelu ʻana iā "Beyond Vietnam ”ma hope o Martin Luther King, pepehi kanaka o Jr. A laila, i ka 1972, ua hoʻokumu wau a me 30 mau mea i ka Union of Vietnamese i ka US (UVUS) ma hope o koʻu hoa pili a me kekahi haumāna haumāna anti-war, ʻo Nguyễn Thái Bình, i kī ʻia e kahi ʻelele palekana US no ka pale lole o Tân Sơn Nhat kahua mokulele ʻoiai ke lawe ʻia aku i Vietnam. ʻO ka make ʻana o Bīnh i haunaele nui ma Sàigòn. Ua kamaʻilio kūʻē aku nā lālā o UVUS i ke kaua, ma ka ʻaoʻao me nā Vietnam Veterans Against the War mai 1972 a hiki i 1975.

Ke hoʻomau nei au e hana a hoʻoulu i nā pilikia o Agent Orange ma waena o nā poʻe Vietnamese - ma Vietnam a me ka US - a me nā kaumāne Vietnam. ʻO ka mea koʻikoʻi ka hopena o ka Agent Orange, kahi o dioxin (kahi o nā meaʻona iʻikeʻia i kaʻepekema) e pili ana i nā keiki a me nā moʻopuna a ka poʻe e hōʻike ana i ka US ma ka hoʻouka kaua. Hiki i nā haneli haneli o kā lākou mau keiki i kēia manawa i nā maʻiʻino a me nā maʻi maʻi. ʻO ke aupuni US,ʻoiai ua hoʻomakaʻo ia e kōkua i ka hoʻomaʻemaʻeʻana i ka Agent Orange e noho mau ana i ka'āina ma Vietnam,ʻaʻole ia e kōkua i nā mea i hōʻehaʻia e Agent Orange, ma Vietnam a ma US paha. ʻO ka ARVN a me nā maka'āinana) i pāʻia e Agent Orangeʻaʻole lākou i hōʻoia a kōkua paha. ʻO kaʻoihana aupuni a me nā mea hana kelepona Hawaiʻi,ʻo ia hoʻiʻo Dow a me Monsanto, e hana i ka mea pono a kū i kā lākou kuleana i ka poʻe i loaʻa!

ʻO ka moʻo PBS "Ke Kaua Vietnam" kahi hoʻomaikaʻi nui aʻe ma mua o nā palapala i pili i ke kaua, e hoʻolele ana i nā leo o ka US a me ka poʻe Vietnamese a hōʻike i ka lāhui kipi o ke kaua. Eia nō naʻe, ke kāhea nei i ke kaua he "kaua Vietnam," ke kuhi nei he kuleana ko Vietnam, ʻoiai ka Farani a laila ʻo ka US nāna i hoʻomaka a hoʻonui iā ia. ʻO ia, he "kaua US ma Vietnam."

Me kona mau ikaika, he mauʻano nawaliwali ka pila ma kahi kiʻi, a e kūkākūkā wau iʻekolu:

ʻO ka mea mua, ʻo ke kuleana o ka neʻe anti-war Vietnamese i ka US mai nā makahiki 70 i ka nalowale loa ʻana mai ke kiʻi ʻoniʻoni. Heʻuʻuku ka uhi ʻana o ka neʻe kaua i ka ʻaoʻao hema o Vietnam.

ʻO ka lua,ʻoiaiʻo ka palapala palapala e kuhikuhi ana iā Agent Orange i ka heleʻana i nā manawa he nui, e palekana ana i nā hopena hopena maikaʻi o nā poʻe Vietnam a me ka US a me kā lākou mau keiki a me nā moʻopuna a 1975 a hiki i kēia manawa. He hopena kēia i mālamaʻia e nā miliona miliona o nāʻohana a he wahi koʻikoʻi loa ia o ka hana o ka hoʻoponopono houʻana i nā kiʻi paʻi. 

Ua kākoʻo ʻo Congresswoman Barbara Lee iā HR 334, The Victims of Agent Orange Relief Act of 2017, e hoʻomaka i ke kuleana o ke aupuni US e hoʻoponopono i kēia hemahema.

ʻO ka kolu,ʻaʻole loheʻia nā leo o nā poʻe'ōpio Vietnamese me nā kāhui Cambodia a me Laotian, kaʻohana e mau ana i ka hopena o ka wehewehe a me ka trauma.

ʻAʻole i pau nā kaua i ka pauʻana o nā pūʻopa a hāʻule ke kaua. Ua lōʻihi ka pōʻino, ma ka'āina a ma ka manaʻo a me nā kino o ka heluna i hoʻopilikiaʻia. Heʻoiaʻiʻo kēia ma Vietnam, ma ka US ma waena o nā poʻe koa Vietnam, nā Vietnamese-, Cambodia, a me Lao-American, a ma waena o nā mea hope loa loa o ke kaua i loaʻa i nā maʻi kīnā o Orange Agent Orange.

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Kauka Hōʻike Kū'ē He hoa a he hoa kōkua hope o ka Pūnaewele no Vietnamese Philosophy, Culture & Society of Temple University. He lālā papa ʻo ia no ka Institute for Culture Vietnamese & Education, a me Mekong NYC (hoʻonohonoho i nā kaiāulu indochinese ma NYC). He lālā hoʻokumu ʻo ia ʻo Peeling the Banana i ka wā ma mua a me Mekong Arts & Music, New York ʻAmelika ʻAmelika ʻAmelika Hui Pū ʻIa.

ʻO Kauka Nasara ka mea nāna i hoʻokumu i ka Union of Vietnamese ma ka US, kū'ē i ke kaua US ma Vietnam (1972-1977), he mea hoʻokumu a alakaʻi o ka Hui o Patriotic Vietnamese ma ka US, kākoʻo mau i ka maluhia ma Vietnam (1977-1981) ), a he mea hoʻokumu i ka Hui o Vietnamese ma ka US, no ka hoʻokumuʻana i nā pilina o Vietnam-Vietnam (1981-1995). I kēia manawaʻo ia he mea hui pū me ka mea nāna i hoʻokumu Ka Paipai ʻĀina a Vietnam Agent ʻĀlika a me ke kuleana kuleana.