Some truly surprising news about Vietnam broke over the weekend: Once a country that condemned homosexuality as a "social evil" alongside drugs and prostitution, Vietnam is now considering legalizing same-sex marriage. The Wall Street Journal also reports that Vietnam will hold its first gay pride parade in Hanoi on August 5. The announcement that Vietnam may amend its current … [Read more...] about Vietnam May Legalize Same-Sex Marriage
Running Saigon – a memoir from Hoangmai Pham and diaCRITICS
From diaCRITICS comes this memoir essay by Hoangmai Pham, who escaped from Saigon to the U.S. with her family in 1975, at age seven. Keeper of Stories is a work-in-progress that interweaves her family’s history in Vietnam and America, and her own psychological journey surviving and understanding that history. Only recently has Mai learned that her strategy for coping with her … [Read more...] about Running Saigon – a memoir from Hoangmai Pham and diaCRITICS
Developing the Entrepreneurship Ecosystem in Vietnam
When meeting someone for the first time, one is often asked, “So what do you do?” Lately, I’ve had a difficult time answering this question. In the last two years, I’ve taken on many different roles in many different organizations. Most of these roles pay little to nothing. Fortunately, I earn passive income from my other businesses, so I can afford the luxury of not … [Read more...] about Developing the Entrepreneurship Ecosystem in Vietnam
Obesity in Asia: American Fast Food is Fare for the Rich
Each time I visit my homeland, Vietnam, I find that many of my relatives have gotten wealthier and progressively fatter, especially their overly pampered children. One cousin in Saigon in particular is raising an obese child. When asked why she was feeding him so much she simply shrugged and said, “Well, we barely had enough to eat during the Cold War. Now that I have money, I … [Read more...] about Obesity in Asia: American Fast Food is Fare for the Rich
What Do You Do? Identity vs. Work, East vs. West
A while back, when I was visiting my mother's ancestral village in Thai Binh province in northern Vietnam, it occurred to me that, after a barrage of questions from distant relatives, not once did anyone ask that common question in America: "So, what do you do?" Instead the questions were familial and personal: "How is your mother?" "Do you own a car?" "Are you married?" When … [Read more...] about What Do You Do? Identity vs. Work, East vs. West