When Thanh is invited to judge a local beauty pageant, she confronts a difficult question: What makes an “ideal” Vietnamese-American woman? This episode explores how old Vietnamese traditions are kept alive through the ritual of a modern day beauty pageant.

Beauty Pageant

Second Wave, a new podcast from KUOW and PRX, explores the Vietnamese-American refugee experience.

Society & Culture

Personal Journals

History

Philosophy

Places & Travel

What would it take to pack up your life and move to a new country? It’s a question Thanh Tan’s parents didn’t have the luxury of asking when they fled...

My family fled Vietnam, now I might go back

What would it take to pack up your life and move to a new country? It’s a question Thanh’s parents didn’t have the luxury of asking when they fled Vietnam to America 40 years ago. But Thanh has always wondered what life would have been like for her if her parents never left. So recently she decided to visit Vietnam to better understand her parent’s homeland and consider a move back.

What If

I was 6 or 7 years old. And I didn’t want to go to swimming lessons at the YMCA. Like, I really didn’t want to go.

My family escaped Vietnam. Others in their boat were not so lucky

When Thanh’s godsister Kristie invites her to revisit their families’ escape from Vietnam, Thanh is not sure what to expect. Thanh agrees to go with Kristie and they visit the small fishing village where her family’s journey to America began. They encounter surprise and heartbreak along the way.

Escape

I grew up in the United States. Like any all-American kid, I said the Pledge of Allegiance, celebrated the Fourth of July and saluted the American flag....

Beauty Pageant

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