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[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1014-E1015]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
RECOGNIZING VIET BAO DAILY NEWS AND WRITING ON AMERICA
______
HON. J. LUIS CORREA
of california
in the house of representatives
Tuesday, July 30, 2019
Mr. CORREA. Madam Speaker, I rise to congratulate Viet Bao Daily News
for the 20th anniversary of the Writing on America program. Viet Bao
Daily News introduced Writing on America twenty years ago, on April 30,
2000, which marked the 25th anniversary of the beginning of a new
Vietnamese population in the United States of America.
In the face of adversity, the Vietnamese community in the U.S. has
demonstrated commendable resilience and strength, building a home for
themselves and laying a strong foundation for generations of Vietnamese
Americans to come. Viet Bao, one of the most well-respected and widely
read sources of Vietnamese daily news, has become an integral part of
this legacy.
Outside of being a reliable news source for the Vietnamese community,
Viet Bao's Writing on America program has fostered the stories of
Vietnamese and Vietnamese American individuals traversing the negative
impacts of the Vietnam War and the Vietnamese diaspora. The program
hosts an annual writing contest for the Vietnamese community to submit
essays on their unique overseas experiences. The top winners of the
contest are given a monetary award, but all approved submissions are
published daily in Viet Bao and aggregated into a book available for
purchase online. These stories attract more than 80,000 readers per
year.
The Writing on America program became a tool of healing for the
individuals sharing their stories and for the individuals who could
relate to their experiences. It is also an archive of Vietnamese
history in America, one that is filled with the grief of leaving one's
home country, an unrelenting belief in the American dream, and the hope
for a future of happiness and prosperity. Over time, it has become a
forum for celebrating the achievements and joys of the Vietnamese
community.
[[Page E1015]]
Viet Bao is an exceptional example of the balance between the
preservation of the Vietnamese language and culture with the need to
establish a strong presence in America. For the past twenty years, Viet
Bao has been building a collection of the most heartfelt and humanizing
stories of Vietnamese survival, family, and revitalization, and
uplifting these stories to a broader audience. I ask that my colleagues
join me in congratulating Viet Bao on cementing their place as a bridge
between Vietnamese and Vietnamese Americans, old and young, and I wish
them success for many more years to come. Thank you for your commitment
to enriching the lives and experiences of the Vietnamese community in
the U.S.
____________________
