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July 13, 2006
Vietnam Archive Awarded More Than $48,000 to Process Records of Vietnamese Political Prisoners
Thomas Reynolds and Mary Saffell unpack archive documents for preservation at the TTU Vietnam Archive.The preservation and processing of records related to thousands of Vietnamese political prisoners will become a top priority of the Texas Tech University Vietnam Center Archive, thanks in part to a grant of $48,565, awarded to the center by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission.
For 20 years, the Families of Vietnamese Political Prisoners Association maintained detailed paper records on at least 10,000 Vietnamese prisoners and refugees. The documents outline their immigration and resettlement in the United States.
Last year, the Vietnamese American Heritage Foundation donated a 135-linear- foot collection of paper documents collected by the FVPPA to the archive. The documents are in critical need of preservation and organization.
“Our goal is to preserve and manage these documents in a way so they will always be available to Vietnamese Americans and their families, researchers, educators and students,” said Stephen Maxner, deputy director of the Vietnam Center at Texas Tech University. “This will allow us to be one of the nation’s flagship organizations with documents related to Vietnamese political prisoners and refugees. By providing archival preservation and access to the records of the FVPPA, this project will significantly advance the study of the Vietnamese immigration experience.”
The FVPPA was founded in 1977 in Arlington, Virginia. The organization worked toward the release of re-education camp detainees in Vietnam and assisted applicants for the Orderly Departure Program, a program created to stem illegal and
dangerous departures from Vietnam. The FVPPA also provided resettlement
support for recent Vietnamese immigrants to the U.S. and lobbied Congress and corresponded with other government officials on behalf of Vietnamese immigrants and refugees.
Refugees on a helicopter transport.
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Refugees boarding a boat. |
The Vietnam Archive mission is to collect and preserve the documentary record of the Vietnam War. The first collection received by the Archive - a package of letters from a Navy hospital corpsman to his family while serving in Vietnam - symbolizes our commitment to preserve the record of individuals and provide greater understanding of their experiences. While the Vietnam Archive continues this commitment as its primary objective, it has expanded its collection policy to include records of veterans' organizations and scholars of the period as well as other individuals and organizations who share experiences from the war in Vietnam.
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Images courtesy of the Douglas Pike Collection, Vietnam Center Archive, Texas Tech University, all rights reserved. |
Program Contact:
Mary Saffell, The Vietnam Archive, (806) 742-9010.
Media Contact:
Michael Castellon , Office of Communications and Marketing, 806-742-2136.