Welcome! This website highlights how the stories of Vietnamese refugees, CHamorus, and non-native Guamanians became intertwined during the Vietnam War period and its aftermath. We hope the materials gathered together here can serve as an educational resource for those interested in learning more about Vietnam and Guam’s entangled history.
Following the Spanish-American War of 1898, the United States took over Guam, or Guåhan, home of the CHamoru people. During World War II, Japan brutally occupied the Pacific island before the US returned in 1944. Since then, Guam has remained a territory of the United States. During the Vietnam War, Andersen Air Force Base and Naval Base Guam played key roles during the US military offensive. CHamoru soldiers fought in the war in disproportionately high numbers. Of these, seventy-seven died in Vietnam. Then, from April to November 1975, Guam served as the first major US processing center for Vietnamese refugees fleeing the war and communist persecution during what became known as Operation New Life. Over 112,000 refugees were processed in Guam in camps on and off base, before resettling in the continental US and elsewhere or remaining in Guam.
This website highlights the narratives of CHamoru Vietnam War veterans, Vietnamese refugees, and Guamanians who contributed to Operation New Life. It features photographs, historical artifacts, archival documents, and oral histories from the UC Irvine Southeast Asian Archive, the Vietnamese Heritage Museum in Garden Grove, the Micronesia Area Research Center at the University of Guam, the Memoirs Pasifika podcast, the National Archives and Records Administration, Andersen Air Force Base, and personal collections.
As you move through the website, we invite you to consider how war, empire, and humanitarianism facilitated memorable encounters and lasting connections between different communities. These are stories of great upheaval and resiliency, that continue to reverberate in the contemporary moment.
Following the Spanish-American War of 1898, the United States took over Guam, or Guåhan, home of the CHamoru people. During World War II, Japan brutally occupied the Pacific island before the US returned in 1944. Since then, Guam has remained a territory of the United States. During the Vietnam War, Andersen Air Force Base and Naval Base Guam played key roles during the US military offensive. CHamoru soldiers fought in the war in disproportionately high numbers. Of these, seventy-seven died in Vietnam. Then, from April to November 1975, Guam served as the first major US processing center for Vietnamese refugees fleeing the war and communist persecution during what became known as Operation New Life. Over 112,000 refugees were processed in Guam in camps on and off base, before resettling in the continental US and elsewhere or remaining in Guam.
This website highlights the narratives of CHamoru Vietnam War veterans, Vietnamese refugees, and Guamanians who contributed to Operation New Life. It features photographs, historical artifacts, archival documents, and oral histories from the UC Irvine Southeast Asian Archive, the Vietnamese Heritage Museum in Garden Grove, the Micronesia Area Research Center at the University of Guam, the Memoirs Pasifika podcast, the National Archives and Records Administration, Andersen Air Force Base, and personal collections.
As you move through the website, we invite you to consider how war, empire, and humanitarianism facilitated memorable encounters and lasting connections between different communities. These are stories of great upheaval and resiliency, that continue to reverberate in the contemporary moment.