NguMatthew Hoh, Ephreli 21, 2020
Kusukela I-Counterpunch
Ukuletha Ikhaya Lempi Yesitha; Izintaba Ziyahlabelela nguNguyen Phan Que Mai
Ngazalelwa eduzane naseNew York City ngo-1973, unyaka lapho iMelika yaqeda ngokusemthethweni impi yayo eVietnam futhi yafika neyokugcina emabuthweni ayo. Impi yaseVietnam, eyaziwa ngamaVietnam ngokuthi iMpi yaseMelika, yayihlale iyinto esuswa kimi, njengoba ngifunda umlando ngemuva komlando, ngabuka imibhalo futhi, njengesiphathimandla saseMarine Corps, ngacwaninga amakhophi ezincwadi zemibhalo zempi zaseMarine Corps. Yize leyo mpi ilwe eminye iminyaka embalwa ngemuva kokuzalwa kwami kubantu baseVietnam, ukuthi abantu baseCambodia naseLaos babulawa ngokubulawa kwabantu abaningi kanye nezenzo ezingemthetho ngiseyingane, nokuthi kuze kube manje, njengoba sengiyindoda sekuphele iminyaka engamashumi amane, yomibili imindeni yaseVietnam neyaseMelika, ezigidini, ihlushwa ukufa nokukhubazeka emiphumeleni enobuthi futhi ehlala njalo ye-Agent Orange, singasasho izinkulungwane ezibulawa futhi zilinyazwe minyaka yonke ngenxa yezinsalela ezingafakwanga zezigidi zamathani ase-US. amabhomu awela eCambodia, eLaos naseVietnam, impi ayizange ibe nomthelela omncane kimi. Noma ngixhumanisa manje nabantu abaningi baseVietnam kanye nesipiliyoni sami sokuhlangana kwamalungu omndeni amaningi abalahlekelwe abayeni, obaba nabafowethu ku-Agent Orange, ukuxhumana kwempi yaseVietnam empilweni yami nokwami okuhlangenwe nakho empini e-Afghanistan nase-Iraq bekumane kungokwezifundo noma kwethiyori.
Ngawo lowo nyaka engazalwa ngawo Nguyen Phan Que Mai wazalwa enyakatho yeVietnam. Njengabo bonke abantu baseVietnam, uQue Mai wayezobhekana neMpi yaseMelika, uhlobo lwayo olude, ukubulawa kwayo okungaxutshiwe kanye nemiphumela yakhona egcwele, ngemigomo yomuntu uqobo. KuQue Mai impi yayiyoba ngqo futhi ngokungaqondile empandeni yazo zonke izinto, akukho lutho olungaqanjwa noma kuvezwe ngaphandle kokuthile okuthile kwempi eya. Impi kuzo zonke izinto, ukuba yiqiniso kubo bonke abaseVietnam, yayiyiqiniso kulawo maMelika kuphela, kanye nemindeni yawo, eyathunyelwa ukuba ibulale futhi ibulawe enkundleni yempi yobukoloni bokugcina kanye neCold War hysteria. UQue Mai wayezosebenza ukuze aphile njengomlimi futhi ongumthengisi wasemgwaqweni iminyaka eminingi kuze kube yilapho uhlelo lokumfundela lumthumela e-Australia ukuyofunda. Ukusuka e-Australia wayezoqala umsebenzi wokuthuthuka ukuze athuthukise izimpilo zabantu hhayi eVietnam kuphela, kodwa kulo lonke elase-Asia. UQue Mai uzobuye aqale inqubo yokubhala ezonikela ngokulinganayo ekwelapheni nasekululameni ezimpini, njengoba nje nomsebenzi wokuthuthuka abamba iqhaza kuwo uhola.
Izintaba Ziyahlabelela yincwadi yesishiyagalolunye kaQue Mai nencwadi yokuqala yesiNgisi. Kuyinoveli yomndeni owodwa ozama ukusinda enyakatho neVietnam kusuka eMpini Yezwe Yesibili edlule eminyakeni eyalandela ukwehlulwa kukahulumeni waseNingizimu ne-Vietnamese yiNyakatho. Yincwadi etholile ukubuyekezwa kwe-rave ngabahlaziyi abahlukahlukene njenge New York Times, Abashicileli Weekly, futhi I-BookPage, futhi inezikolo ezi-4.5 no-4.9 zivuliwe Ama-Goodreads futhi Amazon, ngakho-ke ukuphawula kwami ngeke kubonise izimfanelo ezinkulu futhi ezinhle zeprosesa kaQue Mai noma indlela eguqula futhi yokuguqula ikhasi lokuxoxa kwakhe izindaba. Esikhundleni salokho, ngifuna ukusho nje abantu baseMelika ukuthi kufanele bayifunde le ncwadi ukuze baqonde ukuthi thina e-US senzeni kwabaningi ngaphandle kwase-US.
Eminyakeni eminingi manje, lapho ngibuzwa ukuthi yiziphi izincwadi okufanele zifundwe ukuze kuqondwe izimpi zamanje zase-US ezweni lamaSulumane, ngincome izincwadi ezimbili, noma ngabe ngezimpi zamanje kanye nobabili ngeVietnam: KaDavid Halberstam Okuhle kakhulu nokugqamile kanye noNeil Sheehan Amanga Aqhakazile. Funda lezo zincwadi engizisho kubantu futhi uzoqonda ukuthi kungani i-US kulezi zimpi nokuthi kungani lezi zimpi zingapheli. Kodwa-ke, lezo zincwadi azitsheli okuncane ngabantu ngezimpi: okuhlangenwe nakho kwabo, ukuhlupheka, ukunqoba kanye nokuba khona kwabo. Njengoba uHalberstam noShehan bekwenza ngokuqonda i-US kulezi zimpi, kanjalo noQue Mai akwenzela ukuqonda abantu ababhalwe phansi ngaphansi, abaxhashazwa, bashaywa wababumba.
Kwakunezikhathi eziningana ngenkathi ufunda Izintaba Ziyahlabelela Ngacabanga ukuyeka. Ukuthuka kwenhliziyo kanye nokushiswa yincwadi ebhalwe kimi ngenkathi ngifunda amazwi kaQue Mai ngomndeni wakhe (yize kuyinoveli kungaqondakala ukuthi kuthathwe engxenyeni enkulu emlandweni womndeni wakhe) kwavuselela izinkumbulo zabantu abaningi base-Iraq nabase-Afghan Ngiyazi, abaningi basasemazweni asekhaya, iningi labo lisaphila futhi lisinda empini eqhubekayo noma mhlawumbe kwesinye sezikhathi zaso. Nginecala ngezimpi, engihlanganyele kuzo, nalokho thina njengezwe esakwenza ezizweni eziningi ezingenacala, kuqhuba umbono wami wokuzibulala, njengoba kwenza lokho namanye ama-veteran amaningi aseMelika. Ngakho-ke mhlawumbe kufanele kube…
Ini Izintaba Ziyahlabelela imininingwane futhi ichaza ngempi, hhayi imininingwane yosizi, usizi, ubuze, ukuvivinywa kanye nencazelo yako, kepha ngemiphumela yayo ehlala njalo ezizukulwaneni ngezizukulwane, izidingo zayo ezingapheli zomhlatshelo, kanye nokwenziwa kwayo ngokweqile kwezepolitiki, amasiko kanye nemiphakathi , ayikhawulelwe kwisipiliyoni seVietnam, kepha ifinyelela kubo bonke abathintwe amandla kanye nemiphumela emhlophe yempi. Impela kukhona izakhi nezici ze Izintaba Ziyahlabelela lokho kucacelwe kwisipiliyoni seVietnam, njengoba nje kukhona izinto nezinto ezithile ezimpini ezise-Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Pakistan, Somalia, Syria naseY Yemen ezihlukile ezweni ngalinye. Noma kunjalo kulowo mehluko umehluko, kukhona ubukhona, njengoba imbangela yempi, isizathu sezinto ezinjalo, yithi, i-US.
UQue Mai ubhale incwadi engaphelelwa isikhathi yokudabuka nokulahlekelwa, neyokuzuza nokunqoba. Ukuthi uQue Mai uyazi noma cha, ukhulume izizukulwane ezingaphandle kweVietnam, izigidi ngezigidi zabantu zaqhuma, zabekwa ngaphansi komhlaba, zaphoqeleka ukuba zibaleke futhi zinesifiso sokuphila; abantu abahlanyayo nokho abazuze isifiso sabo sokuba bangagcini nje futhi basinde kodwa ekugcineni bakhiphe futhi basebenzise umshini wempi waseMelika. Yincwadi yabaseMelika futhi. Hhayi isibuko kithi nganoma iyiphi indlela, kodwa iwindi, umbono kulokho esikwenzile futhi siyaqhubeka ukukwenza kwabaningi emhlabeni wonke, kusukela ngaphambili ngisemncane nakuze kube manje njengoba sengikhula.
