I was born and raised in the United States, but I have always wished to visit Vietnam and see the place where my parents and grandparents are from. Because of my experiences growing up as a person with a disability in the Asian-American community, I decided that it was time to go to Vietnam to see if it was as people had described.

Whenever I asked about Vietnam, my family and friends told me that it is not a good country for people with disabilities, and discouraged me from going. They said I would be made fun of and harassed because I have cerebral palsy. Since many Asian cultures believe in reincarnation, many believe that people with disabilities had done something bad in their past lives. Before my trip, my father warned me about the emotions I might feel when encountering other people in Vietnam. This made me a little wary, but I decided I would definitely make the trip anyway.

At the time, I was working at an independent living center in California and doing disability awareness work in the Vietnamese community. I have seen positive results, including an increased acceptance of people with disabilities by the Vietnamese community. When I was selected as a recipient of the Paul G. Hearne/AAPD Leadership Award (see below), it gave me greater confidence to become a stronger leader and promote the acceptance of people’s differences and capabilities in my upcoming trip to Vietnam.

Before my journey, I fortunately made contact with several Vietnamese interns who were in the United States to learn more about disability issues and bring ideas back to their country. They helped me to locate new contacts in Vietnam and I made plans to be there on April 17 – National Disability Day. Sadly, my travel plans ended up causing me to miss this special day, and my parents and I arrived in Hanoi on April 18 – the start to a great and unforgettable trip.

I met with about a dozen disability organizations, mostly in Hue. One contained a sewing shop where they made clothes for school children. The people seemed very happy to be employed. At a school for the Deaf and hard of hearing, we discussed the need to continue to work hard to break down barriers. I also went to a school for the blind, where students lived during the week and spent weekends with their families. I visited a physical and occupational therapy center that works with young children with cerebral palsy, and spoke with parents on the importance of starting to train children at an early age to be independent. Before I left Vietnam, I attended a meeting on the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), a U.S. law that addresses standards and expectations for assuring a good education for children with disabilities. People in Vietnam will try to implement similar guidelines.

In terms of accessibility in Vietnam, there is much need for improvement. There are wide, deep ditches along the streets and sidewalks, and very few crosswalks. (Larger cities do have crosswalks.) Vietnam has little law enforcement for cars and motorcycles, so you can picture what it must be like. However, there are ramps for motorcycles on the street corners. Most of the time my parents pushed me in my wheelchair on the street, close to the ditches, because the sidewalks were filled with store owners selling food, clothing and so on. Since most buildings had steps, my parents would help push my wheelchair up them.

In spite of all of the accessibility issues, I had a great time. In addition to visiting many organizations, I met relatives from both sides of my family. Contrary to the warnings I received about what to expect, the people in Vietnam greeted me with open arms, often coming up to talk to me as if we knew each other. I hope to visit my homeland again to help improve accessibility and build leadership for people with disabilities.

Paul G. Hearne/AAPD Leadership Awards Program

American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) established these awards in 1999 in honor of the founder of AAPD. A key disability rights advocate, Hearne was also a successful lawyer and mentor to many other people with disabilities. Much of his life was dedicated to opening doors and removing barriers for people with disabilities.

The award recognizes up to ten emerging leaders with disabilities each year who have a positive impact on the disability community, providing a $10,000 grant to continue their leadership activities. U.S. residents with any type of disability are eligible to apply. For further information contact:

American Association of People with Disabilities
1629 K Street, NW, Suite 503
Washington, DC 20006 USA
Tel: (800) 840-8844, TTY:(888) 712-4672
E-mail: aapd@aol.com