I think my parents' lives are worthy of writing about. I don't think my life is particularly worthy of writing about..

In the United States, we want to believe we will never become a country of refugees..

Immigrants, as troubling as they are to some people, are an integral part of what the American Dream is supposed to be. They're understandable to a c….

I never called myself a writer because it seemed so pretentious - a writer was what somebody else called you, a title bestowed..

Growing up in the U.S., I was certainly deeply aware of the power of American media, specifically Hollywood and television, in terms of broadcasting ….

In the United States, the immigrant experience occupies a very central place in American mythology. And sometimes, that place wavers between acceptan….

Hollywood in many ways serves as the unofficial ministry of propaganda for the United States..

By college, I had a really grand, preposterous vision of myself as becoming a writer, but I don't think I had the discipline or the patience - or the….

40, 50 years ago, Americans - the majority of Americans did not want to accept these Vietnamese refugees who they saw as completely foreign. Now ther….

Writers from the majority can assume their audiences know what they're talking about - they don't have to explain things, whereas minority writers ar….

I think all immigrants and refugees are preoccupied with memories to one degree or another. But again, this question of how much to remember and how ….

Every new refugee to a society, whether it's the United States or some other place, is subjected to fear. They are the new outsider population, the n….

People may be vaguely aware that there's suffering in Iraq and Afghanistan, but simply because the media are filled with American-centric versions, w….

Immigrants who come to a country are going to lose something, for sure, but they hope to gain a great deal by making this journey, whereas refugees b….

The refugees are not only going to be a demand on the country's resources, but also the refugees raise the possibility that the countries that they'r….

Immigrants who voluntarily come to a country have already made a decision to assimilate to one degree or another. Probably not completely, but they'v….

You have to wear a different face when you're interacting with the larger culture. And you can be more of yourself at home or in the local market or ….

When I was growing up, I cared very little for the customs of my parents, the special things that we're supposed to do as Vietnamese people. But now ….

Refugees are threatening, not just to Americans, but also in many countries the world over. And it's partially because, unlike immigrants, refugees d….

If you're a so-called minority writer, the temptation is to write for the majority... I refuse to do that..

People might like to think a war is done when a cease fire is signed, but for most people who lived through a war it goes on for decades..