Houston, May 12: On Thursday, May 19, join The Heritage Society’s Speaker Series celebrating Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month. Media expert Chau Nguyen and Professor Son Mai, Ph.D. of Midland College will tell stories of the Vietnamese American migration experience in Texas. The event is from 5:00 – 6:30 p.m., at 1100 Bagby Street.
“We would like to thank Houston Area Women’s Center, UH-Downtown’s History Department, Midland College, Vietnamese Community of Houston & Vicinities (VietHouston), and the Asia Society of Texas for their support in sharing Houston’s heritages and promoting this event,” The Heritage Society’s executive director, Alison Bell said. “We are excited to host this educational event and learn about Houston’s large Vietnamese American community.”
“We are fortunate to have Chau Nguyen speak, because she is the first Vietnamese American journalist to receive an Emmy Award for her documentary series covering a medical mission in Vietnam, and the Houston Press named her ‘Reporter of the Year’,” The Heritage Society’s president, Minnette Boesel said. Boesel shared that Professor Son Mai will be sharing the history behind migration.
The Vietnamese community in the United States was minimal until Vietnam War ended on April 30, 1975. Early immigrants entered the country as refugees, with most being supporters of the non-communist South Vietnam in the Vietnam War conflict and fled due to fear of political persecution under the new communist regime. After resettlement, the Vietnamese Americans continued to struggle with challenges in acculturation and discrimination in their new country. By the latest U.S. Census, the Vietnamese American population is now more than 1.5 million, with half residing in the two most populous states of California and Texas, primarily in urban areas.
Guests will enjoy appetizers from Jenni’s Noodle House, wine, and music in the Albert and Ethel Herzstein Museum Gallery. For tickets and information about this speaker series, please see www.heritagesociety.org/programs.
More about The Heritage Society: Founded in 1954 by a number of public-spirited Houstonians to rescue the 1847 Kellum-Noble House from demolition, The Heritage Society has since saved an additional nine historic buildings, moved them from various locations to join the Kellum-Noble House in Sam Houston Park, and restored them to reflect their respective eras. These 10 buildings, along with the museum gallery, serve as historic reference points and exhibition spaces for more than 23,000 artifacts that document life in Houston from the early 1800s to the mid-1900s. For more information about Houston history tours, programs, and venue rentals, please see www.heritagesociety.org or call 713-655-1912, ext. 114.