Remembering Saigon

Remembering Saigon logo

Remembering Saigon: Journeys through and from Guam

January 13, 2025 – May 30, 2025

Location: Orange County & Southeast Asian Archive Center
Lower Level of Gateway Study Center, see map

Hours: Note the OC& SEAA hours and if you'd like to schedule an appointment to view the exhibit, please email Julia Huỳnh, Curator for the Southeast Asian Archive: julia.huynh@uci.edu

About the exhibit:
2025 marks the 50th anniversary of the Fall of Saigon and the end of the Vietnam War. To commemorate the sacrifices of those who fought during the war on behalf of both the United States and South Vietnam, as well as the narratives of hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese refugees who fled the war’s aftermath, the UC Irvine Southeast Asian Archive, in collaboration with the UCLA Asian American Studies Department, has put together this public history exhibit at the Orange County & Southeast Asian Archive Center. “Remembering Saigon: Journeys through and from Guam” highlights how the stories of Vietnamese refugees, CHamorus, and non-native Guamanians became intertwined during the Vietnam War period and its aftermath.

This exhibit highlights the narratives of CHamoru Vietnam War veterans, Vietnamese refugees, and Guamanians who contributed to Operation New Life. It features photographs, historical artifacts, archival documents, and oral histories from the UC Irvine Southeast Asian Archive, the Vietnamese Heritage Museum in Garden Grove, the Micronesia Area Research Center at the University of Guam, the Memoirs Pasifika podcast, the National Archives and Records Administration, and personal collections.


Exhibit team:
Evyn Lê Espiritu Gandhi, Associate Professor of Asian American Studies, UCLA
Trinh Dang, PhD Candidate in Global Studies, UC Irvine
Julia Huỳnh, Curator for the Southeast Asian Archive, UC Irvine
Audra Eagle Yun, Head of Special Collections & Archives, UC Irvine
Long T. Bui, Professor of Global and International Studies, UC Irvine
Tiara Na’puti, Associate Professor of Global and International Studies, UC Irvine
Dịu Hương Nguyễn, Assistant Professor of History, UC Irvine
Max Ronquillo, Jr., President & Board Secretary, Guam Philharmonic Foundation
 

Exhibit programming:

Flyer reads 2025 marks the 50th anniversary of the Fall of Saigon and the end of the Vietnam War. To commemorate the sacrifices of those who fought during the war on behalf of both the United States and South Vietnam, as well as the narratives of hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese refugees who fled the war’s aftermath, the UC Irvine Southeast Asian Archive, in collaboration with the UCLA Asian American Studies Department, has put together this public history exhibit at the Orange County & Southeast Asian Archive Center. “Remembering Saigon: Journeys through and from Guam” highlights how the stories of Vietnamese refugees, CHamorus, and non-native Guamanians became intertwined during the Vietnam War period and its aftermath.


Opening Panel and Reception: January 30, 2025
6:00pm-7:30pm at the OC & SEAA
Join us for an opening panel featuring Thomas Perez, Bùi Văn Phú, and H. Bryant Nguyen at Social Science Plaza A 1100, followed by a reception and exhibit viewing at UCI Libraries’ Orange County and Southeast Asian Archive.
RSVP required for the reception. Please RSVP here: https://forms.gle/oTPmLj6oY2z5TXXVA


Primary Materials Pop Up Workshop: February 21, 2025
1:45pm–3:15pm at the OC & SEAA
During this Primary Materials Pop Up Workshop, participants will have the opportunity to engage with original archival materials related to the exhibit. Hosted in conjunction with the UCI Global Asias Conference.


Operation New Life Symposium: April 2, 2025
1:00pm–5:30pm at the OC & SEAA
This half-day symposium on Operation New Life will feature research talks by Nam C. Kim, Jana K. Lipman, and Trần Hoài Bắc.