Share Your Stories
Hi everyone,
Sorry, this’ll be a little long:
When I was in middle school, I came across a newspaper article about a lesbian teenager in Orange County named Charlene Nguon who led a court case against her high school for discrimination and violating her right to privacy. (They expelled her and told her parents that she was lesbian) I stored it in my memory bank.
Now fast forward a few years, I’m in high school, just finished my junior year. I’m at a very crucial point in my life– you know, trying to figure out what to do with my life and such. Filmmaking is a passion, though I’m still an amateur.
Anyway, for a lot of my life, I tried to distance myself from “Asian” or “Vietnamese” because of the stereotypes that came with it. In the process of trying to reclaim my culture, I began to watch some Vietnamese stuff with my parents. And I thought: wow, a lot of mainstream Vietnamese American media is outdated! Then I thought about all the things that are ignored, the LGBTQIA community among them. I can’t even think of a word for lesbian in Vietnamese, although I’m sure there is one.
There’s a huge connection between misogyny and homophobia. Vietnamese culture is very patriarchal and male oriented, which naturally leads to more homophobia. I’ve seen a few homophobic spoofs about gay men, but NEVER EVER have I seen anything about lesbian women. Mainstream Vietnamese media just pretends like they don’t exist. Since media plays such a significant role our development as people, I’m afraid that this is creating an intolerant, hostile environment for lesbian Vietnamese women.
So to the point: I’m beginning to work on a film about a Vietnamese lesbian teenager; to explore the complex experiences that are not only specific to being a part of the LGBTQIA community, but also entwined in issues of age-ism(?), racism, and sexism.
As a heterosexual woman, I cannot assume that I know or understand the experiences of Vietnamese lesbian teens/ young people and this is where I need some help. I’ve looked more into Charlene Nguon’s story recently, though she’s not Vietnamese and I would really like to make this more Vietnamese-specific. I would really appreciate anything anyone is willing to share with me, whether it be about experiences as an Asian lesbian in general or about more specific emotions that you felt/feel.
Thank you so much & I look forward to hearing/reading your answers.
I don’t read anything that sounds like either one of you is unhappy...
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