WESTMINSTER, Calif. (AP) — When the South Vietnamese capital of Saigon fell to the North Vietnamese forces 50 years ago this week, it prompted a mass exodus of some 2 million people — hundreds of thousands fleeing perilously on small boats across open water to escape the communist regime.
UN agencies that provide aid worldwide slash jobs or cut costs as US funding dropsImmigrants working legally in the Texas Panhandle live in limbo under Trump's crackdownAbout that hug . Whitmer risks backlash from Democrats as she embraces Trump in MichiganPrank calls to other players unrelated to the one received by Shedeur Sanders, AP source saysMovie Review: 'Thunderbolts' is Marvel, and Florence Pugh, in high gear'Nowhere to turn': Small businesses dependent on imports from China are feeling more desperateAmazon launches its first internet satellites to compete against SpaceX's StarlinksFACT FOCUS: Trump credited with rising military recruitment.
UN agencies that provide aid worldwide slash jobs or cut costs as US funding dropsImmigrants working legally in the Texas Panhandle live in limbo under Trump's crackdownAbout that hug ... Whitmer risks backlash from Democrats as she embraces Trump in MichiganPrank calls to other players unrelated to the one received by Shedeur Sanders, AP source saysMovie Review: 'Thunderbolts' is Marvel, and Florence Pugh, in high gear'Nowhere to turn': Small businesses dependent on imports from China are feeling more desperateAmazon launches its first internet satellites to compete against SpaceX's StarlinksFACT FOCUS: Trump credited with rising military recruitment. Growth started before his reelectionWhy a New York zoo is feeding a baby vulture with a hand puppetA man airlifted from Japan's Mount Fuji returns to the slope days later and is rescued againWorries about flying seem to be taking off. Here's how to cope with in-flight anxietyCommunity, mentors and skill-building: Experts weigh the role of employee resource groupsPhotos of a power outage in Spain and Portugal knocks out ATMs, subways and traffic signalsThe World in PicturesFDA scrutiny of Novavax COVID-19 vaccine sparks uncertainty about other shotsGenetic medicine can leave people with rare mutations behind. But there's new hopeSpring allergies are back. Here's how to check pollen levels and keep from sneezingTech industry tried reducing AI's pervasive bias. Now Trump wants to end its 'woke AI' effortsAfter a year of turmoil, The Washington Post is taking note of its journalism againVatican issues 'sede vacante' postage stamps valid until a new pope is electedEl desacreditado cardenal Becciu se retira del cónclave para elegir al papaJuez duda de argumento del gobierno de EEUU de que tribunal no puede revisar declaración fronterizaUN agencies that provide aid worldwide slash jobs or cut costs as US funding dropsImmigrants working legally in the Texas Panhandle live in limbo under Trump's crackdownAbout that hug ... Whitmer risks backlash from Democrats as she embraces Trump in MichiganPrank calls to other players unrelated to the one received by Shedeur Sanders, AP source saysMovie Review: 'Thunderbolts' is Marvel, and Florence Pugh, in high gear'Nowhere to turn': Small businesses dependent on imports from China are feeling more desperateAmazon launches its first internet satellites to compete against SpaceX's StarlinksFACT FOCUS: Trump credited with rising military recruitment. Growth started before his reelectionWhy a New York zoo is feeding a baby vulture with a hand puppetA man airlifted from Japan's Mount Fuji returns to the slope days later and is rescued againWorries about flying seem to be taking off. Here's how to cope with in-flight anxietyCommunity, mentors and skill-building: Experts weigh the role of employee resource groupsPhotos of a power outage in Spain and Portugal knocks out ATMs, subways and traffic signalsThe World in PicturesFDA scrutiny of Novavax COVID-19 vaccine sparks uncertainty about other shotsGenetic medicine can leave people with rare mutations behind. But there's new hopeSpring allergies are back. Here's how to check pollen levels and keep from sneezingTech industry tried reducing AI's pervasive bias. Now Trump wants to end its 'woke AI' effortsAfter a year of turmoil, The Washington Post is taking note of its journalism againVatican issues 'sede vacante' postage stamps valid until a new pope is electedEl desacreditado cardenal Becciu se retira del cónclave para elegir al papaJuez duda de argumento del gobierno de EEUU de que tribunal no puede revisar declaración fronterizaHung Vu, 73, a former South Vietnamese army officer who left the country in 1975, poses with a photo of himself taken during the Vietnam War at his army surplus store in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025. Hung Vu, 73, a former South Vietnamese army officer who left the country in 1975, works at his army surplus store in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025. A woman walks past a “1975" installation in the parking lot of Asian Garden Mall as the sun sets behind it in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Monday, April 21, 2025. The display marks the year of the fall of Saigon. Large U.S. and former South Vietnamese flags fly in the wind in the parking lot of Asian Garden Mall in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Saturday, April 26, 2025. Anton Le, who was 5 years old when he and his family arrived in the U.S. from Vietnam via the Philippines, plays with his son, Kevin, while waiting for his order outside a café in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Monday, April 21, 2025. Erik Nguyen, a volunteer and UCLA student, holds a vision chart for a participant during a Vietnamese Community Health Project event at Asian Garden Mall in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Saturday, April 26, 2025. Tam Nguyen, chairman and co-owner of Advance Beauty College, pays his respects in front of a portrait of his late father in his office in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., Wednesday, April 23, 2025. Kien Tam Nguyen, center, founder of Advance Beauty College, is introduced to a group of student visitors alongside her son and chairman of the school, Tam Nguyen, left, and Ted Nguyen of the Orange County Transportation Authority, right, during an event at the school in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., Wednesday, April 23, 2025. Three Vietnamese women work in a traditional dress shop in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Saturday, April 26, 2025. Two Vietnamese women shop for fruit at a market in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Friday, April 25, 2025. A visitor poses for a photo in front of the Asian Garden Mall, which displays “1975" to mark the year of the fall of Saigon, in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Friday, April 25, 2025. A group of Vietnamese men play cards outside a cafe in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025. Hoang Le, a Vietnamese student at Advance Beauty College who moved to the U.S. in 2022, practices hair washing on a mannequin in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., Wednesday, April 23, 2025. Customers chat while waiting for their orders at a cafe in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025.Vietnamese monk Tu Truong, 52, who said he came to the U.S. in 1993 through the Humanitarian Operation program, sits for a photo at his Buddhist temple in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025. U.S. and POW/MIA flags fly at half-staff outside a post office in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Monday, April 21, 2025. Fresh flowers are left at the Vietnam War Memorial honoring South Vietnamese military officers in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Wednesday, April 23, 2025. A woman wearing a traditional Vietnamese conical hat waits for a bus in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025. A woman pushes a shopping cart past rows of American flags and banners advertising U.S. citizenship and immigration services in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., Wednesday, April 23, 2025. The flag of former South Vietnam flies above statues of two soldiers at the Vietnam War Memorial in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Friday, April 25, 2025. Hung Vu, 73, a former South Vietnamese army officer who left the country in 1975, poses with a photo of himself taken during the Vietnam War at his army surplus store in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025. Hung Vu, 73, a former South Vietnamese army officer who left the country in 1975, poses with a photo of himself taken during the Vietnam War at his army surplus store in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025. Hung Vu, 73, a former South Vietnamese army officer who left the country in 1975, works at his army surplus store in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025. Hung Vu, 73, a former South Vietnamese army officer who left the country in 1975, works at his army surplus store in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025. A woman walks past a “1975" installation in the parking lot of Asian Garden Mall as the sun sets behind it in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Monday, April 21, 2025. The display marks the year of the fall of Saigon. A woman walks past a “1975" installation in the parking lot of Asian Garden Mall as the sun sets behind it in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Monday, April 21, 2025. The display marks the year of the fall of Saigon. Large U.S. and former South Vietnamese flags fly in the wind in the parking lot of Asian Garden Mall in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Saturday, April 26, 2025. Large U.S. and former South Vietnamese flags fly in the wind in the parking lot of Asian Garden Mall in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Saturday, April 26, 2025. Anton Le, who was 5 years old when he and his family arrived in the U.S. from Vietnam via the Philippines, plays with his son, Kevin, while waiting for his order outside a café in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Monday, April 21, 2025. Anton Le, who was 5 years old when he and his family arrived in the U.S. from Vietnam via the Philippines, plays with his son, Kevin, while waiting for his order outside a café in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Monday, April 21, 2025. Erik Nguyen, a volunteer and UCLA student, holds a vision chart for a participant during a Vietnamese Community Health Project event at Asian Garden Mall in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Saturday, April 26, 2025. Erik Nguyen, a volunteer and UCLA student, holds a vision chart for a participant during a Vietnamese Community Health Project event at Asian Garden Mall in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Saturday, April 26, 2025. Tam Nguyen, chairman and co-owner of Advance Beauty College, pays his respects in front of a portrait of his late father in his office in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., Wednesday, April 23, 2025. Tam Nguyen, chairman and co-owner of Advance Beauty College, pays his respects in front of a portrait of his late father in his office in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., Wednesday, April 23, 2025. Kien Tam Nguyen, center, founder of Advance Beauty College, is introduced to a group of student visitors alongside her son and chairman of the school, Tam Nguyen, left, and Ted Nguyen of the Orange County Transportation Authority, right, during an event at the school in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., Wednesday, April 23, 2025. Kien Tam Nguyen, center, founder of Advance Beauty College, is introduced to a group of student visitors alongside her son and chairman of the school, Tam Nguyen, left, and Ted Nguyen of the Orange County Transportation Authority, right, during an event at the school in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., Wednesday, April 23, 2025. Three Vietnamese women work in a traditional dress shop in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Saturday, April 26, 2025. Three Vietnamese women work in a traditional dress shop in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Saturday, April 26, 2025. Two Vietnamese women shop for fruit at a market in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Friday, April 25, 2025. Two Vietnamese women shop for fruit at a market in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Friday, April 25, 2025. A visitor poses for a photo in front of the Asian Garden Mall, which displays “1975" to mark the year of the fall of Saigon, in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Friday, April 25, 2025. A visitor poses for a photo in front of the Asian Garden Mall, which displays “1975" to mark the year of the fall of Saigon, in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Friday, April 25, 2025. A group of Vietnamese men play cards outside a cafe in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025. A group of Vietnamese men play cards outside a cafe in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025. Hoang Le, a Vietnamese student at Advance Beauty College who moved to the U.S. in 2022, practices hair washing on a mannequin in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., Wednesday, April 23, 2025. Hoang Le, a Vietnamese student at Advance Beauty College who moved to the U.S. in 2022, practices hair washing on a mannequin in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., Wednesday, April 23, 2025. Customers chat while waiting for their orders at a cafe in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025.Customers chat while waiting for their orders at a cafe in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025.Vietnamese monk Tu Truong, 52, who said he came to the U.S. in 1993 through the Humanitarian Operation program, sits for a photo at his Buddhist temple in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025. Vietnamese monk Tu Truong, 52, who said he came to the U.S. in 1993 through the Humanitarian Operation program, sits for a photo at his Buddhist temple in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025. U.S. and POW/MIA flags fly at half-staff outside a post office in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Monday, April 21, 2025. U.S. and POW/MIA flags fly at half-staff outside a post office in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Monday, April 21, 2025. Fresh flowers are left at the Vietnam War Memorial honoring South Vietnamese military officers in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Wednesday, April 23, 2025. Fresh flowers are left at the Vietnam War Memorial honoring South Vietnamese military officers in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Wednesday, April 23, 2025. A woman wearing a traditional Vietnamese conical hat waits for a bus in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025. A woman wearing a traditional Vietnamese conical hat waits for a bus in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Tuesday, April 22, 2025. A woman pushes a shopping cart past rows of American flags and banners advertising U.S. citizenship and immigration services in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., Wednesday, April 23, 2025. A woman pushes a shopping cart past rows of American flags and banners advertising U.S. citizenship and immigration services in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., Wednesday, April 23, 2025. The flag of former South Vietnam flies above statues of two soldiers at the Vietnam War Memorial in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Friday, April 25, 2025. The flag of former South Vietnam flies above statues of two soldiers at the Vietnam War Memorial in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., Friday, April 25, 2025. to the North Vietnamese forces 50 years ago this week, it prompted a mass exodus of some 2 million people — hundreds of thousands fleeing perilously on small boats across open water to escape the communist regime. Many ultimately settled in Southern California’s Orange County in an area now known as “Little Saigon,” not far from Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, where the first refugees were airlifted upon reaching the U.S. The diaspora now also has significant populations in Virginia, Texas and Washington state, as well as in countries including France and Australia. Still, the community in Southern California comprises the largest and most well-established Vietnamese population anywhere outside Vietnam. Memories of Wednesday’s anniversary of the fall of Saigon — the South Vietnamese city renamed Ho Chi Minh City by the communists — has conjured up mixed feelings from grief and resentment to honor and pride in the diaspora here. Hung Vu, 73, a former South Vietnamese army officer who left the country in 1975, works at his army surplus store in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 22, 2025. Hung Vu, 73, a former South Vietnamese army officer who left the country in 1975, works at his army surplus store in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 22, 2025. A woman walks past a “1975" installation in the parking lot of Asian Garden Mall as the sun sets behind it in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 21, 2025. The display marks the year of the fall of Saigon. A woman walks past a “1975" installation in the parking lot of Asian Garden Mall as the sun sets behind it in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 21, 2025. The display marks the year of the fall of Saigon. Large U.S. and former South Vietnamese flags fly in the wind in the parking lot of Asian Garden Mall in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 26, 2025. Large U.S. and former South Vietnamese flags fly in the wind in the parking lot of Asian Garden Mall in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 26, 2025. Anton Le, who was 5 years old when he and his family arrived in the U.S. from Vietnam via the Philippines, plays with his son, Kevin, while waiting for his order outside a café in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 21, 2025. Anton Le, who was 5 years old when he and his family arrived in the U.S. from Vietnam via the Philippines, plays with his son, Kevin, while waiting for his order outside a café in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 21, 2025. For those who lived through the war, the 50th anniversary marks a time of mourning as they remember what they lost — their homeland, their past lives, even their identity. Five decades later, the pain is still raw. One man still can’t bring himself to say much about the family he had to leave behind. Others were barely toddlers when they arrived in a foreign land. The day Saigon fell — April 30, 1975 — is referred to by the older generation as “Black April” or “National Day of Resentment.” But for their children and grandchildren, many with scant knowledge of the war, the anniversary is a time to honor the resiliency of an immigrant community and to celebrate the accomplishments of a population that started as refugees and now has become an influential part of California and U.S. society. Erik Nguyen, a volunteer and UCLA student, holds a vision chart for a participant during a Vietnamese Community Health Project event at Asian Garden Mall in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 26, 2025. Erik Nguyen, a volunteer and UCLA student, holds a vision chart for a participant during a Vietnamese Community Health Project event at Asian Garden Mall in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 26, 2025. Tam Nguyen, chairman and co-owner of Advance Beauty College, pays his respects in front of a portrait of his late father in his office in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., April 23, 2025. Tam Nguyen, chairman and co-owner of Advance Beauty College, pays his respects in front of a portrait of his late father in his office in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., April 23, 2025. Kien Tam Nguyen, center, founder of Advance Beauty College, is introduced to a group of student visitors alongside her son and chairman of the school, Tam Nguyen, left, and Ted Nguyen of the Orange County Transportation Authority, right, during an event at the school in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., April 23, 2025. Kien Tam Nguyen, center, founder of Advance Beauty College, is introduced to a group of student visitors alongside her son and chairman of the school, Tam Nguyen, left, and Ted Nguyen of the Orange County Transportation Authority, right, during an event at the school in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., April 23, 2025. Three Vietnamese women work in a traditional dress shop in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 26, 2025. Three Vietnamese women work in a traditional dress shop in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 26, 2025. Two Vietnamese women shop for fruit at a market in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 25, 2025. Two Vietnamese women shop for fruit at a market in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 25, 2025. “I don’t really think about it in a negative light,” said Linda Nguyen, a local business leader whose parents were refugees. “For my generation, it’s about honoring what happened, but also celebrating our future and our current successes.” Little Saigon in Orange County has evolved from a commercial district contained within a few city blocks in Westminster in the late 1980s to a sprawling region spanning several cities. It’s also now considered the cultural capital for the Vietnamese diaspora around the world. “We were looking for a freedom to prosper,” said Trí Trần, a University of California, Irvine professor who left Vietnam by sea on a boat in 1986.Little Saigon is not only home to Asian Garden Mall, the largest Vietnamese shopping mall in the U.S., but it also hosts the world’s largest international Vietnamese film festival. The population has become a powerful voting bloc in Orange County, elevating some of the first Vietnamese-Americans to elected office. For the first time last year, Orange County elected a Vietnamese-American to Congress. Derek Tran, a Democrat whose parents were refugees, triumphed in a district historically favorable to Republicans. “We’re very much a young community in this country,” Tran said. “We’re finding our place, but we’re also figuring out how to consolidate our voice and our culture and our history.” A visitor poses for a photo in front of the Asian Garden Mall, which displays “1975" to mark the year of the fall of Saigon, in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 25, 2025. A visitor poses for a photo in front of the Asian Garden Mall, which displays “1975" to mark the year of the fall of Saigon, in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 25, 2025. Marking the anniversary that ultimately led to the war’s end, many Little Saigon businesses and storefronts are adorned with South Vietnam flags. Even the Asian Garden Mall has a prominent 1975 sign, bearing both the U.S. and the South Vietnam flags. Hưng Vũ, a member of the South Vietnamese military who arrived in 1975, plans to reunite with old friends and share stories at a community event Wednesday about how daily life was reshaped by life in the U.S. “This is no festive occasion,” said Vũ, who owns a uniform store that specializes in recreating the South Vietnamese military’s uniforms, ribbons and medals. “It’s a day of mourning.” He recalled feeling overwhelmed in a new country where he couldn’t speak the language and didn’t understand social norms. He didn’t even know how to get around or make a living. A group of Vietnamese men play cards outside a cafe in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 22, 2025. A group of Vietnamese men play cards outside a cafe in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 22, 2025. Hoang Le, a Vietnamese student at Advance Beauty College who moved to the U.S. in 2022, practices hair washing on a mannequin in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., April 23, 2025. Hoang Le, a Vietnamese student at Advance Beauty College who moved to the U.S. in 2022, practices hair washing on a mannequin in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., April 23, 2025. Customers chat while waiting for their orders at a cafe in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 22, 2025. Customers chat while waiting for their orders at a cafe in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 22, 2025. Vietnamese monk Tu Truong, 52, who said he came to the U.S. in 1993 through the Humanitarian Operation program, sits for a photo at his Buddhist temple in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 22, 2025. Vietnamese monk Tu Truong, 52, who said he came to the U.S. in 1993 through the Humanitarian Operation program, sits for a photo at his Buddhist temple in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 22, 2025. “The knowledge gap was tremendous,” Vũ said in Vietnamese. “But we were hungry, so we went out and found a way to feed ourselves.” Many, including former members of wealthy South Vietnamese families, were forced to take on low-paid jobs in their new country, such as cleaning houses and working at nail salons, to survive. Some worked multiple jobs while going to school to send money back to relatives in Vietnam. They included teenagers who arrived in the U.S. alone, said Tram Le, who studied the experience of the first generation of Vietnamese Americans after the war.U.S. and POW/MIA flags fly at half-staff outside a post office in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 21, 2025. U.S. and POW/MIA flags fly at half-staff outside a post office in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 21, 2025. Those born and raised in the U.S. often were shielded by their parents from learning about the horrors of the war and the divisions in their homeland that erupted into civil conflict between North and South Vietnam. The younger generations no longer carry the fervor of anti-communist sentiment that was once a big part of life in Little Saigon, where a portrait of the late North Vietnamese leader Ho Chi Minh in 1999 prompted a 53-day protest. “The political theme that was once significant to our parents did not carry on to us,” Linda Nguyen said. “To us, Vietnam is Vietnam.”Fresh flowers are left at the Vietnam War Memorial honoring South Vietnamese military officers in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 23, 2025. Fresh flowers are left at the Vietnam War Memorial honoring South Vietnamese military officers in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 23, 2025. A woman wearing a traditional Vietnamese conical hat waits for a bus in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 22, 2025. A woman wearing a traditional Vietnamese conical hat waits for a bus in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 22, 2025. A woman pushes a shopping cart past rows of American flags and banners advertising U.S. citizenship and immigration services in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., April 23, 2025. A woman pushes a shopping cart past rows of American flags and banners advertising U.S. citizenship and immigration services in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Garden Grove, Calif., April 23, 2025. The flag of former South Vietnam flies above statues of two soldiers at the Vietnam War Memorial in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 25, 2025. The flag of former South Vietnam flies above statues of two soldiers at the Vietnam War Memorial in the Little Saigon neighborhood of Westminster, Calif., April 25, 2025. Young Vietnamese American entrepreneurs no longer shun Vietnam and are working directly with businesses in Vietnam with much success, said Tim Nguyễn, the head of the Vietnamese American Chamber of Commerce. They are also talking about their mental health needs, a topic once taboo among Vietnamese. Traditional names, food and áo dài dresses — once considered embarrassing — are now points of pride, while artists and filmmakers are exploring ways to expand the Vietnamese-American narrative beyond the war, said Tram Le. Tâm Nguyễn, the former head of the chamber of commerce, is among a growing number of Vietnamese-Americans who are choosing to return to Little Saigon to preserve their families’ business legacies. He took over his parents’ cosmetology school in Little Saigon, which has trained more than 50,000 students over four decades. “We’re the cultural bridges between generations,” he said. “We’re very proud to be Vietnamese, while we’re also proud that we’re contributing greatly to the American society.”This is a documentary photo story curated by AP photo editors. For more coverage of the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War’s end, visit
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