Media

“Vietnamization” — The People’s University

On May 8, 2025, I delivered a public lecture titled “Vietnamization” as part of the People’s University series at the Ohio County Public Library in Wheeling, West Virginia. This event was part of the Library’s course on the Vietnam War and their broader public initiative to provide free, public education.

The lecture provided a comprehensive survey of the Vietnamization period from 1968 to 1972, with particular attention to the Republic of Vietnam’s (RVN) efforts to mobilize South Vietnamese society in the aftermath of the 1968 Tet Offensive. Central to the presentation was the RVN’s General Mobilization Call, spearheaded by President Nguyễn Văn Thiệu, which expanded the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) to over one million soldiers, mobilized South Vietnamese society for war, provided an opportunity for Nixon to de-Americanize the Vietnam conflict. The lecture situated these developments within the broader context of the Cold War, including the 1969 Sino-Soviet border conflict and President Richard Nixon’s diplomatic strategy of triangulation, which sought to exploit tensions between the Soviet Union and China to the advantage of the United States.

In addition to analyzing the domestic mobilization campaign, the lecture surveyed the key military strategies implemented by both the RVN and United States, as well as the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV). These included the invasions of Cambodia in 1970 and Laos in 1971. The discussion also addressed the evolving diplomatic landscape of the period, highlighting President Nixon’s so-called Nixon Doctrine and his pursuit of negotiations with North Vietnam in Paris. Furthermore, the lecture considered the rise of the anti-war movement in the United States, emphasizing how growing domestic opposition to the war influenced American policy decisions and complicated the implementation of Vietnamization.

Departing from older scholarship that often centers on American decision-making and relies heavily on English-language sources, the lecture adopted a Vietnam-centric approach that emphasized Vietnamese agency and the domestic dimensions of the war. This perspective reflects my broader commitment to advancing historically grounded and critically engaged scholarship while contributing to public dialogue on the complexities of warfare, diplomacy, and society in Cold War Southeast Asia.

Episode 3034 of the Vietnam Veteran News Podcast, interview of Phi-Van Nguyen

For Episode 3034 of the Vietnam Veteran News Podcast, which aired on the fiftieth anniversary of the fall of Saigon, I interviewed Phi-Van Nguyen, author of A Displaced Nation: Vietnamese Refugees and the Politics of Asylum. Andy Pham, a longtime friend of the podcast, provided the introduction to the conversation. Nguyen’s book examines the experiences of approximately eight hundred thousand mostly Roman Catholic evacuees who fled North Vietnam in 1954. She argues that their displacement had a profound and lasting impact not only on the political landscape of the Republic of Vietnam but also on the evacuees themselves. By assisting with their transportation, relief, and resettlement, the United States and various organizations bolstered Saigon’s legitimacy and reinforced among the evacuees the belief that the "free world" would never permit Vietnam to remain permanently divided. Rather than viewing the conflicts between 1945 and 1989 as discrete wars, Nguyen demonstrates that the evacuees experienced these events as a continuous civil war. This conviction, while not always consistent or uniform in strategy, sustained their political activism over subsequent decades, even after resettlement abroad. The interview highlights the broader significance of Nguyen’s work for understanding the transnational dimensions of the Vietnam War and the enduring legacies of displacement, activism, and memory.

After Saigon’s Fall: The Postwar Decade (1975-1985)

Each year, the Contemporary History Institute (CHI) at Ohio University hosts the annual Baker Peace Conference, fostering discussions on war and peace. The 2025 conference, themed “After Saigon’s Fall: The Postwar Decade (1975-1985),” commemorated the fiftieth anniversary of the fall of Saigon by examining the decade that followed. The event featured three panels: “Indochina,” “Cold War Allies,” and “Southeast Asian Neighbors.”

I had the privilege of moderating the first panel on "Indochina," which focused on the experiences of Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos—the nations most immediately affected by the war and its legacies. This panel explored the consequences of war and revolution in Indochina during the decade after 1975, including the fall of Saigon, the establishment of communist rule, and the broader regional implications of postwar conflicts. Panelists examined topics such as Vietnam’s occupation of Cambodia, the Cambodian genocide, Laotian political shifts, and the economic and social transformations within these countries.

• Ian Baird – Professor of Geography at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, specializing in political ecology, human-environment interactions, and Southeast Asian studies.

• Sophal Ear – Associate Professor at the Thunderbird School of Global Management at Arizona State University, focusing on international development, political economy, and Southeast Asian politics.

• Alex-Thái Vo – Research Assistant Professor at the Vietnam Center & Archive at Texas Tech University, with research interests in Vietnamese history and archival studies.

• Tuong Vu – Professor of Political Science at the University of Oregon, specializing in comparative politics, Southeast Asian politics, and political regimes.

Vietnam Veteran News Podcast

In Episode 2773 of the Vietnam Veteran News Podcast, I joined Andy Pham to interview historian Van Nguyen-Marshall discusses her new book, Between War and the State: Civil Society in South Vietnam, 1954-1975. Andy asked me to join him on the podcast after reading my book review in the Journal of Military History and meeting him at the Vietnam conference hosted by the University of California Berkeley. The episode centers on Nguyen-Marshall's exploration of South Vietnamese civil society during the turbulent years of warfare and political turmoil. The book sheds light on various voluntary organizations—such as mutual-help, charitable, professional, and women's groups—that operated despite the challenges of war, government repression, and foreign intervention.

Nguyen-Marshall, an Associate Professor at Trent University, challenges stereotypes about South Vietnam being devoid of social agency by illustrating its residents' vibrant public lives. The book's discussion highlights how this civil society navigated the competing influences of the South Vietnamese state, foreign powers like the U.S., and the communist Party. It is available through Cornell Press.

Military Historians are People, Too!

I had the pleasure of joining the podcast Military Historians are People, Too! hosted by Brian Feltman and Bill Allison to talk about my journey as a PhD candidate at Ohio University. Before pursuing my doctoral program, I talked about growing up idolizing my father and grandfather, both of whom were Marines, and how this led me to pursue a career in the military but how I was medically disqualified. My interest in military history led me to pursue a career in academia. I completed my BA and MA in History at San Diego State University, where I had the privilege of working with Pierre Asselin. We discussed how Pierre supported and encouraged me to study Vietnamese in Vietnam and helped me enroll at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities in Hanoi. We also had some lighter moments, discussing my favorite band, the White Buffalo, my love for the Russian-Georgian dish, Chakhokhbili, and the delicious brisket found at Kiser’s BBQ in Athens, Ohio!