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Americans of Vietnamese birth or descent From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Vietnamese Americans (Vietnamese: Người Mỹ gốc Việt) are Americans of Vietnamese ancestry.[5] They constitute a major part of all overseas Vietnamese. As of 2023, over 2.3 million people of Vietnamese descent live in the United States, making them one of the largest Asian American ethnic groups.[6] The majority (60%) are immigrants, while 40% were born in the United States.[7]
| |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 2,347,344 (2023)[1] (ancestry or ethnic origin) 1,365,841 (2023)[2] (born in Vietnam) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| |
| Languages | |
| Vietnamese, English | |
| Religion | |
| Buddhism (37%) • Christianity (36%) Unaffiliated (23%)[4] • Vietnamese folk religion • Caodaism • Hòa Hảo | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Vietnamese people, Overseas Vietnamese, Vietnamese Canadians, Vietnamese Australians, Asian Americans, Chinese Americans, Hmong Americans |
The Vietnamese American population grew significantly after 1975, when a large wave of South Vietnamese refugees arrived in the U.S. following the end of the Vietnam War.[8] Today, over half of Vietnamese Americans reside in California and Texas, particularly in metropolitan areas like Los Angeles, Houston, and San Jose.[9][10]
The history of Vietnamese Americans is relatively recent. Historical records indicate that a small number of Vietnamese, including Ho Chi Minh, arrived during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.[11][12]
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Office of Immigration Statistics reports that the earliest recorded instances of Vietnamese individuals obtaining lawful permanent resident (LPR) status in the United States occurred between 1951 and 1959, during which 290 Vietnamese were granted residency.[13] These numbers began to grow during the Vietnam War, with approximately 2,949 Vietnamese obtaining LPR status between 1960 and 1969.[13] Between 1955 and 1974, approximately 18,000 immigrants from Vietnam were admitted to the U.S.[14]
The Fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975, which marked the end of the Vietnam War, triggered the first major wave of Vietnamese immigration, as many with ties to the United States or the South Vietnam government feared reprisals from the communist regime.[15]
In the week leading up to the Fall of Saigon, between 10,000 and 15,000 people departed on scheduled flights, followed by an additional 80,000 who were evacuated by air.[16][17] The final group was transported aboard U.S. Navy ships.[16][18] Altogether, approximately 125,000 to 130,000 Vietnamese refugees were evacuated and resettled in the United States during the first wave.[19][20][21]
After leaving Vietnam, the refugees first arrived at reception camps in the Philippines and Guam before being transferred to temporary housing at U.S. military bases, including Camp Pendleton (California), Fort Chaffee (Arkansas), Eglin Air Force Base (Florida), and Fort Indiantown Gap (Pennsylvania).[22] Following resettlement preparations, they were assigned to voluntary agencies (VOLAGs), which provided assistance in securing financial and personal support from sponsors in the U.S.[23][24]
Most first-wave refugees were better educated, wealthier, and more proficient in English than those in subsequent waves.[25][23] According to 1975 U.S. State Department data, over 30% of first-wave household heads were medical professionals or technical managers, 16.9% worked in transportation, and 11.7% held clerical or sales jobs in Vietnam. Less than 5% were fishermen or farmers.[26]
The resettlement of South Vietnamese refugees in the U.S. initially faced mixed reception, fueled by fears of job competition, welfare strain, and cultural concerns.[27] According to a 1975 Gallup poll, only 36% of Americans approved of the resettlement, while 54% disapproved.[27]
Despite initial public reluctance, President Gerald Ford emphasized a "profound moral obligation" to assist the refugees,[28] calling it a "great human tragedy."[29] In response, Congress passed the Indochina Migration and Refugee Assistance Act of 1975, providing special entry status and $455 million in resettlement aid.[30]
To prevent the refugees from forming ethnic enclaves and minimize impact on local communities, they were initially dispersed across the country.[31][23] However, within a few years, many relocated to California and Texas.[31]
Between 1978 to the mid-1980s, a second major wave of refugees from former South Vietnam fled, primarily by sea on fishing boats, becoming known as "boat people."[32] This group represented a diverse range of backgrounds, including South Vietnamese elites, former South Vietnam military and government officials, Chinese minorities, religious minorities, farmers, fishermen, and merchants.[32][33]
Many fled persecution following the fall of Saigon, where many South Vietnamese, particularly former South Vietnamese military officers and government employees, were detained in re-education camps for political indoctrination, forced labor, and torture.[34][35][36] A significant number of boat people included ethnic Chinese, Hmong, and other minority groups, many of whom were Vietnamese citizens.[37] Notably, ethic Chinese were specifically targeted for expulsion and accounted for 50% to 80% of the over 50,000 monthly refugee arrivals at Southeast Asian camps in 1979.[38][37][39]
The boat people were often rescued up by foreign ships and transported to asylum camps in Hong Kong and Southeast Asia such as Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, and the Philippines. From these camps, many were resettled in countries that agreed to accept them, including the United States, Canada, Australia, France, and others.[23][26][24]
Between 1975 and 1979, limitations in existing refugee admission laws required U.S. presidential actions to admit approximately 300,000 Southeast Asian refugees, including many from Vietnam.[40] In response to the plight of Vietnamese boat people, Congress passed the Refugee Act of 1980 to ease restrictions on refugee admissions.[40][41]
In 1979, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) established the Orderly Departure Program (ODP) to facilitate legal emigration from Vietnam to the U.S. and other countries.[42] The ODP initially succeeded in relocating an average of 16,500 individuals annually—over 115,000 people by 1986, including 50,000 to the United States.[43] However, progress eventually stalled due to disagreements over priorities, as the U.S. focused on specific groups such as Amerasian children and re-education camp prisoners, while Vietnam prioritized the exodus of ethnic Chinese.[43]
Vietnamese refugees in the Gulf Coast faced discrimination as they arrived throughout the 1970s and 1980s. White fishermen complained about unfair competition from their Vietnamese American counterparts. "Non-Vietnamese docks refused to allow Vietnamese American boats to dock, [and] wholesalers refused to buy shrimp from Vietnamese Americans." The Ku Klux Klan attempted to intimidate Vietnamese American shrimp fishermen, at one time having plans to burn Vietnamese shrimp boats.[44] The Vietnamese Fishermen's Association, with the aid of the Southern Poverty Law Center, won a 1981 antitrust suit against the Klan, disbanding the "private army of white supremacists."[45]
While Vietnamese immigration has remained relatively steady since the 1980s, the pathways for Vietnamese immigrants to obtain lawful permanent resident (LPR) status have changed dramatically.
Prior to 1998, the majority of Vietnamese green card holders were granted LPR status on humanitarian grounds, such as through refugee or asylum programs.[46] In 1982, for example, 99% of Vietnamese immigrants received green cards via these channels.[46]
By 2022, this figure had fallen to less than 1%, or fewer than 100 Vietnamese. Instead, the majority of Vietnamese immigrants (87%) gained green cards through family reunification, a rate much higher than the overall figure of 58%.[46] About 12% secured LPR status via employment sponsorship.[46]
As of 2023, nearly 2.4 million Vietnamese Americans lived in the United States, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, [47][48] with approximately 60% being immigrants ("foreign-born") and 40% born in the U.S.[49][50]
The largest populations concentrated in California (38%), Texas (14%), and Washington State (5%).[51] Florida, Virginia, Georgia, and Massachusetts each accounted for about 3% to 4% of the Vietnamese American population.[51]
Major hubs for Vietnamese Americans include Orange, Santa Clara, and Los Angeles counties in California, and Harris County in Texas, together making up 31% of Vietnamese immigrants in the U.S.[51]
Little Saigon, located in Westminster and Garden Grove, is the largest and oldest Vietnamese-American enclave in the United States.[52] According to the 2023 United States Census American Community Survey (ACS), Vietnamese Americans account for 43.8% and 32.6% of the population, respectively.[53][54]
| Rank | County | State | Population |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Orange County | California | 149,000 |
| 2 | Santa Clara County | California | 99,800 |
| 3 | Los Angeles County | California | 95,600 |
| 4 | Harris County | Texas | 72,900 |
| 5 | King County | Washington | 34,500 |
| 6 | San Diego County | California | 34,200 |
| 7 | Alameda County | California | 27,500 |
| 8 | Sacramento County | California | 26,400 |
| 9 | Tarrant County | Texas | 23,700 |
| 10 | Fairfax County | Virginia | 23,300 |
Coming from different waves of immigration, Vietnamese Americans have a lower educational attainment than overall Asian American population but it is higher than other Southeast Asian groups and is also trending upward, with each generation more likely to attain higher degrees and/or qualifications overall than the generation prior.[55]
As of 2019, 32% of Vietnamese Americans held a bachelor's degree or higher, compared to 54% of Asian Americans overall and 33% of the total U.S. population.[56] Educational attainment varies notably between U.S.-born and foreign-born Vietnamese Americans. Among those born in the U.S., 55% have earned a bachelor's degree or higher, while 27% of those born abroad have achieved the same level of education.[57]
In 2023, Vietnamese Americans had a median household income of $88,467, which was 9.7% higher than the national median of $80,610.[58][59]
As of 2022, around 11% Vietnamese Americans lived below the poverty line, a rate similar to the 11.5% rate for the general U.S. population.[60][61] This poverty rate has shown a gradual decline over recent years. In 2015, about 14.3% of Vietnamese Americans were living in poverty,[62] which decreased to 12% by 2019.[63]
The U.S. Census Bureau reports in 2016 among working Vietnamese Americans (civilian employed population 16 years and over): 32.9% had management, business, science, and arts occupations; 30.9% had service occupations; 17.0% had sales and office occupations, 4.3% had reported natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations; and 15% had natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations.[64]
According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2019 American Community Survey, approximately 1.5 million people aged five and older speak Vietnamese at home, making it the fifth most commonly spoken language in the U.S., after English, Spanish, Chinese, and Tagalog.[65]
Additionally, the survey indicates that 57% of Vietnamese speakers reported speaking English "less than very well."[65] This percentage is higher than that of Spanish (39%) and Tagalog (30%) speakers, and comparable to Chinese speakers (52%).[65]
English proficiency varies significantly between U.S.-born and foreign-born Vietnamese Americans. While 90% of U.S.-born Vietnamese Americans are fluent in English, only 35% of the foreign-born counterparts report the same level of proficiency.[56]
English relies on tonal inflection sparingly, primarily to convey questions, whereas Vietnamese is a tonal language in which the tone of a word determines its meaning. For example, the syllable ma can have different meanings depending on its tone, as marked by diacritics:
Another key difference between Vietnamese and English is the extensive use of relationship-specific pronouns in Vietnamese. English employs "you" as a universal second-person singular pronoun, regardless of age, gender, or relationship. In contrast, Vietnamese employs different pronouns depending on factors like the person's age, gender (anh or chị), and relationship (bạn, cậu, or mày).[26]
Religious affiliation of Vietnamese Americans (2023) [66]
According to the Pew Research Center, 37% of Vietnamese Americans identify as Buddhist, 36% as Christian, and 23% have no religious affiliation, while smaller proportions adhere to other faiths (2%), identify as Muslim (<1%), or did not provide an answer (3%).[67][68]
In 2024, Vietnamese Americans are more likely to identify as Christian compared to those in Vietnam. While Christians, primarily Roman Catholics, make up about 10% of Vietnam's population,[69] they make up approximately 36% of the Vietnamese American population.[68] Due to hostility between Communists and Catholics in Vietnam, many Catholics fled the country after the Communist takeover, and many Catholic Churches had sponsored them to America.[70]
Many practice Mahayana Buddhism,[23][26] Taoism, Confucianism and animist practices (including ancestor veneration) influenced by Chinese folk religion.[71] Vietnamese are a major ethnic group notable among Asian American Catholics.[72] Hòa Hảo and Caodaism are two of the other religions of Vietnamese Americans.
There are 150 to 165 Vietnamese Buddhist temples in the United States, with most observing a mixture of Pure Land (Tịnh Độ Tông) and Zen (Thiền) doctrines and practices.[73][74] Most temples are small, consisting of a converted house with one or two resident monks or nuns.[73] Two of the most prominent figures in Vietnamese American Buddhism are Thich Thien-An and Thich Nhat Hanh.[74] There are also Theravada-based Vietnamese temples like Chua Buu Mon in Port Arthur, Texas.
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Vietnamese immigration to the United States post-Vietnam War (1975) profoundly influenced American cuisine.[75] Vietnamese Americans opened restaurants to preserve traditions and support families, introducing iconic dishes like phở, bánh mì, and gỏi cuốn, which have since become widely popular and embraced across the country.[75][76]
Alongside traditional dishes, Vietnamese Americans have introduced notable fusion creations. Garlic noodles, introduced in the 1970s, blend Vietnamese flavors with Italian pasta.[77][78] Huy Fong sriracha sauce, created in 1980 by a Vietnamese refugee, was originally made for the Vietnamese and other Asian immigrant communities but has since gained nationwide popularity, becoming a staple in U.S. kitchens.[79][80]
Viet-Cajun cuisine is another prominent example of fusion, which has flourished in Gulf Coast regions like Louisiana and Texas.[75] Vietnamese Americans in these areas integrated Vietnamese and Cajun culinary elements, creating dishes such as crawfish boils infused with lemongrass, garlic, and other Vietnamese seasonings.[81][82]
Vietnamese Americans continue to celebrate Vietnamese lunar calendar holidays, with Tết (Vietnamese New Year) being the most significant.[83] Festivities include activities like bầu cua tôm cá (dice games), múa lân (lion dances), the exchange of lì xì (red envelopes), and sharing festive meals featuring dishes such as bánh chưng, bánh tét, and mứt (candied fruit).[84][85][86]
In recent years, Lunar New Year, which includes Tết, has gained recognition in the U.S. California (2022), Colorado (2023), and Washington State (2024) have officially designated it as a state holiday, while New York declared it a school holiday in 2023.[87][88][89]
Tết Trung Thu, or the Mid-Autumn Festival, is also widely celebrated by Vietnamese Americans. Much like Tết, cities with sizable Vietnamese communities often organize large-scale Tết Trung Thu festivities that include lion dances, traditional performances, and community-centered activities.[90][91][92] The festival is known for its iconic mooncakes and colorful lanterns.[93][94]
According to a 2008 Manhattan Institute study, Vietnamese Americans are among the most-assimilated immigrant groups in the United States.[95] Although their rates of cultural and economic assimilation were comparable to other groups (perhaps due to language differences between English and Vietnamese), their rates of civic assimilation were the highest of the large immigrant groups.[95] As many were refugees from South Vietnam, Vietnamese Americans viewed their stay in the United States as permanent and became involved in the political process at a higher rate than other groups.
Vietnamese Americans have the highest naturalization rate among all immigrant groups.[96] As of 2023, 78% of eligible Vietnamese immigrants in the United States had become U.S. citizens, compared to 53% of the total foreign-born population.[97][96]
However, there are "substantive within-group differences among Vietnamese Americans and that the classical linear assimilation hypothesis does not adequately explain political incorporation. Although naturalization does appear to increase steadily over time, with earlier waves more likely to have acquired citizenship, the same pattern of associations does not appear for our analysis of registration and voting. Notably, it was the third wave of Vietnamese immigrants who were most likely to cast ballots in the last presidential election."[98]
Vietnamese Americans have arrived in the U.S. primarily as refugees, with little or no money. Census data indicates that Vietnamese Americans are an upwardly-mobile group; their economic status improved substantially between 1989 and 1999.[99]
Most first-wave Vietnamese refugees initially worked at low-paying jobs in small services or industries.[100] Finding work was more difficult for second-wave and subsequent immigrants, due to their limited educational background and job skills. They were employed in blue-collar jobs, such as electrical engineering and machine assembling.[26] In San Jose, California, the economic difference can be seen in the Vietnamese American neighborhoods of Santa Clara County. In downtown San Jose, many Vietnamese work as restaurant cooks, repairmen and movers. The Evergreen and Berryessa sections of the city are middle- to upper-middle-class neighborhoods with large Vietnamese American populations, many of whom work in Silicon Valley's computer, networking and aerospace industries.
According to a 2002 Census Bureau survey of Vietnamese-owned firms, slightly more than half of the businesses are personal services or repair and maintenance. The period from 1997 to 2002 saw substantial growth in the number of Vietnamese-owned business.[101] In 2002 34.2 percent of Vietnamese-owned businesses were in California, followed by Texas with 16.5 percent.[101]
Young Vietnamese Americans adults are well educated, and often provide professional services. Since older Vietnamese Americans have difficulty interacting with the non-Vietnamese professional class, many Vietnamese Americans provide specialized professional services to fellow immigrants.[citation needed] Of these, a small number are owned by Vietnamese Americans of Hoa ethnicity. In the Gulf Coast region (Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi and Alabama), Vietnamese Americans are involved with the fishing industry and account for 45 to 85 percent of the region's shrimp business. However, the dumping of imported shrimp from Vietnam has impacted their livelihood.[102] Many remain employed in Silicon Valley's computer and networking industry, despite layoffs following the closure of various high-tech companies.[103]
Vietnamese Americans, shaped by a history of fleeing communism as refugees, tend to lean Republican (51%) more than any other Asian American group.[104][105] However, younger Vietnamese Americans are increasingly shifting toward the Democratic Party.[104] Among voters aged 50 and older, 68% identified with or leaned Republican, while 58% of younger voters identified with or leaned Democratic.[104]
Many older, first-generation Vietnamese American refugees who fled communist rule after the Vietnam War exhibit strong patriotism toward the United States, support for the military, and anti-communist views that often align with the Republican Party.[106][107][108] The party's vocal anti-communism appealed to those who resettled during the Reagan administration and has continued to resonate with many since 2016, particularly due to Donald Trump's anti-China rhetoric.[109][110] This support persists despite Trump’s plans to deport some Vietnamese refugees.[111][112]
According to the 2008 National Asian American Survey, 22 percent identified with the Democratic Party and 29 percent with the Republican Party.[113] Exit polls during the 2004 presidential election indicated that 72 percent of Vietnamese American voters in eight eastern states polled voted for Republican incumbent George W. Bush, compared to the 28 percent voting for Democratic challenger John Kerry.[114] In a poll conducted before the 2008 presidential election, two-thirds of Vietnamese Americans who had decided said that they would vote for Republican candidate John McCain.[113]
In contrast, younger Vietnamese Americans lean Democratic, marking a generational shift from the Republican preferences of older immigrants who fled communism.[104] The younger generation's political preferences are shaped by exposure to diverse viewpoints, including those on economic policy, healthcare, and social justice, which encourage a shift toward progressive values.[104][107]
Polling data underscores this generational divide. A survey by the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) revealed that Vietnamese Americans aged 18–29 favored Democrat Barack Obama by 60 percentage points during the 2008 presidential election.[115] According to a 2012 Pew Research Center survey, 47% of registered Vietnamese American voters leaned Republican and 32% Democratic. Among Vietnamese Americans overall (including non-registered voters), 36% leaned Democratic and 35% Republican.[116]
Several Vietnamese Americans took part in the January 6 United States Capitol attack, with some reportedly waving the South Vietnamese flag and marching alongside neo-Nazi and white nationalist groups.[117][118] Of the seven Asian individuals charged in connection with the event, five were of Vietnamese descent.[119]
The flag's display during the Capitol riot disappointed many Vietnamese Americans, particularly younger generations, who denounced its association "with hate, with racism, with supremacy."[120] They argued that "the ideas of authoritarianism, of overturning the people's will, are not the principles that this flag stands for,"[121] and expressed feeling embarrassed by the incident, saying it made them "looked like clowns."[120] The event also prompted many young people to question "their elders' unyielding loyalty to and interpretation of the banner's values."[121][122]
Amid this controversy, Congresswoman Stephanie Murphy, the first Vietnamese American woman elected to Congress, served on the January 6th Committee, where she co-led a public hearing and contributed to the investigation of the attack on the U.S. Capitol.[123]
According to a 1995 study, the relationship between Vietnam and the United States has been the most important issue for most Vietnamese Americans.[26] As many are refugees from South Vietnam, many are strongly opposed to communism; this attitude could also take root during and after the Indochina Wars, injustice in reeducation camps as well as other issues with the communist government.[133] In a 2000 Orange County Register poll, 71 percent of respondents ranked fighting communism as a "top priority" or "very important."[134] Vietnamese Americans stage protests against the Vietnamese government's policies.[135]
In 1999, opposition to a video-store owner in Westminster, California who displayed the flag of Vietnam and a photo of Ho Chi Minh peaked when 15,000 people held a nighttime vigil in front of the store;[136] this raised free speech issues. Although few Vietnamese Americans enrolled in the Democratic Party because it was seen as more sympathetic to communism than the Republican Party, Republican support has eroded in the second generation and among newer, poorer refugees.[137] However, the Republican Party still has strong support; in 2007, in Orange County, Vietnamese Americans registered as Republicans outnumbered registered Democrats (55 and 22 percent, respectively).[138]
Some Vietnamese Americans have lobbied city and state governments to make the flag of South Vietnam (rather than the flag of Vietnam) the symbol of the Vietnamese in the United States, and objections were raised by the Vietnamese government.[139] The California and Ohio state governments enacted laws adopting the South Vietnamese flag in August 2006. Since June 2002, 13 states, seven counties and 85 cities had adopted resolutions recognizing the South Vietnamese flag as the Vietnamese Heritage and Freedom Flag.[140][141]
During the months following Hurricane Katrina, the Vietnamese American community in New Orleans (among the first to return to the city) rallied against a landfill used to dump debris near their community.[142] After months of legal wrangling, the landfill was closed.[143][144]
Since the onset of Hong Kong protests in June 2019, Vietnamese Americans have been the most active Asian Americans rallying in favor of the pro-democracy (pro-Labor Union) Hongkongers, organizing vocal marches in California, where their largest community exists. They clashed with pro-communist Mainland Chinese immigrants.[145][146][147] Trúc Hồ, a famed Vietnamese American singer, wrote a song in July 2019 to praise the Hong Kong protesters. The song went viral among Vietnamese and Hong Kong citizens.[148]
Although census data counts those who identify as ethnically Vietnamese, how Vietnamese ethnic groups view themselves may affect that reporting.
The Hoa people are Han Chinese who migrated to Vietnam. In 2013, they made up 11.5 percent of the Vietnamese American population, and in majority, identified itself as Vietnamese.[149] Some Hoa Vietnamese Americans also speak a dialect of Yue Chinese, generally code-switching between Cantonese and Vietnamese to speak to both Hoa immigrants from Vietnam and ethnic Vietnamese. Teochew, a variety of Southern Min which had virtually no speakers in the US before the 1980s, is spoken by another group of Hoa immigrants. A small number of Vietnamese Americans may also speak Mandarin as a third (or fourth) language in business and other interaction.
Some Vietnamese Americans are Eurasians: people of European and Asian descent. They are descendants of ethnic Vietnamese and French settlers and soldiers (and sometimes Hoa) during the French colonial period (1883–1945) or the First Indochina War (1946–1954).
Amerasians are descendants of an ethnic Vietnamese (or Hoa) parent and an American parent, most commonly white or black. The first substantial generation of Amerasian Vietnamese Americans were born to American personnel, primarily military men, during the Vietnam War from 1961 to 1975. Many Amerasians were ignored by their American parent; in Vietnam, the fatherless children of foreign men were called con lai ("mixed race") or the pejorative bụi đời ("dust of life").[150] Since 1982, Amerasians and their families have come to the United States under the Orderly Departure Program. Many could not be reunited with their fathers, and commonly arrived with their mothers. In some cases, they were part of false families that were created to escape from Vietnam.[24] Many of the first-generation Amerasians and their mothers experienced significant social and institutional discrimination in Vietnam, where they were denied the right to education; discrimination worsening after the 1973 American withdrawal, and by the U.S. government, which discouraged American military personnel from marrying Vietnamese nationals and frequently refused claims of U.S. citizenship that were lodged by Amerasians born in Vietnam if their mothers were not married to their American fathers.[151][152][153]
Discrimination was even greater for children of black servicemen than for children of white fathers.[154] Subsequent generations of Amerasians (children born in the United States) and Vietnamese-born Amerasians whose American paternity was documented by their parents' marriage or their subsequent legitimization have had an arguably more favorable outlook.[155]
The 1988 American Homecoming Act helped over 25,000 Amerasians and their 67,000 relatives in Vietnam, to emigrate to the United States. Although they received permanent-resident status, many have been unable to obtain citizenship and express a lack of belonging or acceptance in the US because of differences in culture, language and citizenship status.[156][157]
The Thái peoples, including the Laotians, Nungs and other Tai ethnicities who migrated to the United States were majority from Northern Vietnam. The community, overall, do not develop a separate ethnic identity sentiment due to long friendly relations with the Vietnamese rulers, thus the community don't regard itself Thai Americans or Laotian Americans, and see itself part of Vietnamese American diaspora.[158][159][160]
Cham are an ethnic minority of Vietnam and Cambodia, and a small number of them came to the United States as refugees fleeing the Cambodian genocide. The main Cham populations in the United States are located in Orange County, California, Portland, and Seattle.[161][162]
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