Oral History Interview with Lai Maccarone
Title
Oral History Interview with Lai Maccarone
Narrator (written)
Lai Maccarone
Narrator First Name
Lai
Narrator Last Name
Maccarone
Interviewer
Jeanpaul Passot (’21)
Abstract
Lai Maccarone describes growing up in Minnesota as a South Vietnamese refugee. She recounts her earliest memories of her mother and being placed into foster families. Later, Maccarone recalls her experiences at the University of Minnesota, emphasizing her time studying abroad in Japan, where she faced discrimination as a Vietnamese person. She also mentions her membership in the ROTC program, and shares how her experiences influenced her opinion of the American military. After college, Maccarone worked for Northwest Airlines, where she unsuccessfully attempted to visit Vietnam with her sister. In 1998, Maccarone returned to Vietnam to visit her family in Da Nang. She was well received by her family but remarks that she experienced some culture shock while in Vietnam. Maccarone concludes the interview by noting her nostalgia for Vietnam before its 21st-century development, her desire to take her family to Vietnam, and the difficulty of maintaining ties with the Minnesota Vietnamese community.
Date of Interview
2019-08-22
Subject
Dartmouth Family Member
Refugees
Vietnamese Americans
Language
English
Rights
Interview Audio Source (MP3)
//rcweb.dartmouth.edu/DDHI/histories/maccarone_lai/maccarone_lai.mp3
Interview Transcript Source (PDF)
//rcweb.dartmouth.edu/DDHI/histories/maccarone_lai/maccarone_lai_transcript_final.pdf
HTML
//rcweb.dartmouth.edu/DDHI/histories/maccarone_lai/maccarone_lai_transcript_final.html