The unsettling resettlement of Vietnamese boat people.

• Author: Smith, Michael P.

THE RESETTLEMENT of Southeast Asian refugees in Sacramento, Calif., offers a pointed example of the social practices by which new immigrants are shaping the emerging U.S. urban landscape. This reterritorialization has created problems, as well as opportunities, within the Vietnamese migrant community. The practice of similar customs and traditions by both first- and second-wave immigrants from Vietnam to Sacramento conceals real differences between their patterns of adaptation to American life. The diversity often is masked by the promotion by the popular media of the Vietnamese as the contemporary model minority through images of strong family unity, children as valedictorians, and successful businessmen, as well as in the academic literature measuring economic adjustment. In fact, discussing the Vietnamese by extrapolating from the backgrounds and experiences of the most well-equipped first-wave settlers tends to ignore the splits both within and between them and second-wave refugees, masking many adjustment difficulties, particularly among the latter.

Although often exaggerated and oversimplified, the adjustment of the first wave is attributable in part to their social backgrounds in Vietnam--many refugees were from urban areas, educated, with professional and military experience. Although their occupational skills from Vietnam were not immediately transferable, a number eventually were able to adapt their abilities and skills to jobs where there was some carry-over after developing a functional command of the English language. Their relatively high educational and occupational backgrounds, plus their familiarity with urban living and exposure to Western culture, helped to contribute to their relatively successful adaptation.

The situation of second-wave refugees has been quite different. Arriving from 1979 onward, they generally are less educated, not as well off financially, and often from rural areas with limited exposure to Western culture or to a technical and urbanized way of life. In many cases, illeteracy and the concept of classroom learning, particularly in acquiring English language skills, is a major obstacle. Frequently, these refugees were ethnically Chinese minorities in Vietnam who had faced past discrimination there, particularly since the fall of Saigon. Furthermore, the conditions of their escape left second-wave boat people with few financial resources, deep emotional scars, and in many more ways less prepared than the first wave to make a smooth transition.

Our research, based on in-depth, ethnographic interviews with second-wave immigrants in Sacramento, is revealing that they tend to be isolated, not only from the mainstream society, but from first-wave settlers their own community. For example, we are finding surprisingly little use of or involvement by second-wave refugees in established local Vietnamese associations and the services they offer. The differences in the backgrounds between second- and first-wave settlers--stemming not only from economic, social, and ethnic factors, but from the vast regional differences found in Vietnam--often make it difficult for them to relate to each other. Moreover, given the political conditions in Vietnam, the second wave often displays a distrust of former government officials found in the first wave, who tend to dominate Vietnamese associations and clubs. Perhaps most significant, according to an active Vietnamese community member and social worker for Child Protective Services, first-wave settlers running the Sacramento Vietnamese associations tend to lose sight of, or are out of touch with, the concerns and problems facing the majority community of second-wave immigrants. Among the key areas are those confronting youth in attempting to figure out what it means to be both Vietnamese and American. Lack of knowledge about and/or inability to identify with the perceived purpose and interests of Vietnamese associations has contributed to the second waves lack of participation in formal social networks created by the first wave, further increasing their isolation.

Part of the isolation experienced by second-wave settlers may be attributed to the nature of the Sacramento community. Although many second-wave immigrants tend to settle in the Lemon Hill neighborhood, there is no overarching Vietnamese organization or even industry--such as electronics in San Jose, Calif.--binding them together. If participation in formal networks by second-wave immigrants has been minimal, the creation and use of informal ones also is weak. The majority of respondents have reported that they do not know...