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This div will be replaced
For a generation
of Americans,
Vietnam has been
associated with
one of the most
difficult
periods in
modern U.S.
history. And
Vietnam itself
continues to
grapple with the
long-term
effects of a
brutal war and
persistent
poverty. Yet,
for the past
decade, Vietnam
has had one of
the fastest
growing
economies —
rivaling that of
China and making
it a major
player in the
global economy.
Attracting an
ever increasing
number of
multinational
corporations,
Vietnam has one
of the highest
rates of foreign
investment in
the world.
Vietnam’s
economic
turnaround since
embracing the
market economy
has made it a
poster child of
neoliberalism.
Yet, all is not
well in Vietnam
— as the
increasing
number of
wildcat strikes
attest. Low
wages, growing
inequality, and
a severely
eroded safety
are posing
serious
challenges to
the country’s
poor and working
class — and the
country’s labor
movement.
What are the
implications of
this transition
for Vietnamese
and U.S. workers
and trade
unions? Why are
workers in
Vietnam going
out on strike?
What is the
Vietnamese labor
federation doing
to defend its
workers — and
global labor
standards —
against global
capital? How
should these
developments
reshape the
decades-old Cold
War
relationships
between U.S. and
Vietnamese
unions? How
might unionists
and labor
educators
productively
work together?
Speakers
Kent Wong,
author of
Organizing
on Separate
Shores:
Vietnamese
and
Vietnamese
American
Union
Organizers,
Director,
UCLA Center
for Labor
Research and
Education,
and founding
president of
the Asian
Pacific
American
Labor
Alliance (APALA)
Ramon A.
Rodriguez,
former
Vietnam
veteran and
NY Education
and
Development
Coordinator
for
1199SEIU,
UHE
Greg
Mantsios,
director of
the Murphy
Institute
Moderator
May Chen,
former
International
Vice-President,
Workers
United/SEIU,
and National
Executive
Board
member,
APALA. All
of our
panelists
have been
part of
recent labor
delegations
to Vietnam
This breakfast
forum is jointly
sponsored with
the Asian
American/Asian
Research
Institute (AAARI)
of CUNY and
APALA.
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