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{
    "localId": "1069175",
    "label": "1975/05/20 - Speech to Indochinese Refugees, San Diego, California",
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{
    "id": "1069175",
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    "contentType": "document",
    "title": "1975/05/20 - Speech to Indochinese Refugees, San Diego, California",
    "citationUrl": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/1069175",
    "collections": [
        "Frances K. Pullen Files",
        "Frances Pullen's Speech Reading Copies"
    ],
    "subjects": [
        "Vietnam (Republic)",
        "President (1974-1977 : Ford). Office of the First Lady. 1974-1977",
        "Refugees",
        "Vietnamese Americans",
        "Vietnam War, 1961-1975"
    ],
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{
    "seq": 1,
    "pageIndex": 0,
    "type": "document",
    "url": "https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/75/691/1069175/content/library/document/0003/1069175.pdf",
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    "ocrText": "The original documents are located in Box 3, folder \"Speech to Indochinese Refugees, San\nDiego, California, May 20, 1975\" of the Frances K. Pullen Papers at the Gerald R. Ford\nPresidential Library.\nCopyright Notice\nThe copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of\nphotocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Gerald Ford donated to the United\nStates of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections.\nWorks prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public\ndomain. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to\nremain with them. If you think any of the information displayed in the PDF is subject to a valid\ncopyright claim, please contact the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.\nDigitized from Box 3 of the Frances K. Pullen Files at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library\nREMARKS\nMy HUSBAND, OUR CHILDREN AND I HAVE FOLLOWED WITH\nGREAT SADNESS THE TRAGIC EVENTS IN INDOCHINA. WE SHARE\nYOUR GRIEF, AND HAVE PRAYED FOR YOUR SAFE ARRIVAL,\nI KNOW MANY OF YOU ARE TROUBLED, AND THAT YOU WONDER\nWHAT LIES AHEAD FOR YOU, I AM HERE TODAY TO ASSURE YOU\nTHAT AMERICA OFFERS YOU THE SAME OPPORTUNITY THAT IT HAS\nOFFERED COUNTLESS GENERATIONS OF IMMIGRANTS -- OUR WELCOME\nIS GENUINE, AND OUR INTENTIONS ARE SINCERE,\nI KNOW YOU HAVE EXPERIENCED GREAT HARDSHIP, AND THAT\nYOUR SITUATION HERE IS NOT IDEAL. BUT THIS IS ONLY A\nTEMPORARY SITUATION WHICH, WHEN RESOLVED, WILL ALLOW\nYOU TO REALIZE A NEW LIFE FOR YOURSELF, YOUR FAMILIES, AND\nA PROMISING FUTURE FOR YOUR CHILDREN AND YOUR CHILDRENS'\nCHILDREN.\n-2-\nTHOSE WHO CAME BEFORE -- PEOPLES FROM ALL OVER\nTHE WORLD, OF ALL RELIGIOUS FAITHS AND POLITICAL\nCONVICTIONS -- HAVE IN AMERICA FOUND A NEW HOME.\nEVEN AS THEY PRESERVED THEIR MEMORIES AND MANY\nCULTURAL TRADITIONS OF THEIR FORMER HOMES, THEY\nJOINED WHOLEHEARTEDLY IN THE EXPERIENCE OF\nAMERICAN LIFE,\nTHERE IS A LOVELY VIETNAMESE PROVERB FROM WHICH WE\nCAN ALL DRAW INSPIRATION:\n\"THE ROAD IS HARD BUT IT IS NOT HARD\nBECAUSE OF THE WIDTH OF THE RIVERS\nOR HEIGHT OF THE MOUNTAINS.\nIT IS HARD ONLY BECAUSE OF THE FEAR WE\nHAVE OF THE MOUNTAINS AND THE RIVERS,\n\"\nAMERICA OFFERS OPPORTUNITY IN FEAR. IT COMES\nTO THOSE WHO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IT. I KNOW YOU HAVE\nTHE INDUSTRY, THE STRENGTH AND THE COURAGE TO SEIZE\nTHAT OPPORTUNITY.\n-3-\nI WANT TO EXTEND TO YOU, ON BEHALF OF ALL\nAMERICAN IMMIGRANTS, AS WE ARE ALL IMMIGRANTS,\nA WARM HEARTFELT WELCOME,\nStatus of Refugee Resettlement Program as of May 16\nTo date a total of 126, 989 refugees from Indochina have entered U.S.\ncontrol.\nOf this total, 65, 553 are at Pacific safehavens and restaging areas or on\nvessels.\nApproximately 61, 436 have arrived in the United States. Of those,\n44, 635 are at reception centers and 16,801 have been processed and\nhave left government control.\nREMARKS\nMy husband, our children and I have followed with great sadness\nthe tragic recent events in Indochina, We share your grief.\na have prayed for your safe arrival\n7\nI know many of you are troubled, and that you wonder what will\nlies ahead for you\nhappen to you here in the United States.\nam here today to\nI/want to assure you that America offers you the same promise\nopportunity\nthat it has offered countless generations of immigrants. America\n/\nour\nwelcome is genuine, came -- peoples over\nand Those our who intentions before are sincerelt from all\nin amen\nthe world, of all religious faiths and political convictions have found\nfound a new a\nhome. Even as they preserved their memories and many cultural\ntraditions of their former homes, they joined wholeheartedly in the\nexperience of American life.\nAmerica offers opportunity; it comes to those who take advantage\nof it. I know you have the industry and strength to seize that opportunity.\nYou bring to our nation a rich cultural heritage that, added to the\nvariety of the American experience, can only make our nation stronger.\nYou will find with us love and understanding and a desire to share in\nyour culture and experience. You will also learn we are anxious to\nhelp.\nWe can be proud that you have chosen America as your haven and\nyour home.\nthis is your a / temporary situation to a\nand & that situation here up not which ideal@ But wh\nOknow you have experienced great hardship\nresured anly will allow you realize new\nlike for yourself your families and a promisin\nfuture for your children and your childrens child\n2\nWe will draw new strength from you, our most recent generation\nof immigrants. You may need our help and understanding now, but I\nknow you will soon achieve success on your own.\nI want to extend to you, on behalf of all Americans, the same warm\nwelcome that we have extended throughout our history to those who\nhave sought refuge here. You come to us in your moment of deep tragedy,\nand we reach out our hands.\n3\nThere is a lovely Vietnamese proverb from which we can all draw\ninspiration:\n\"The road is hard but it is not hard because of\nthe width of the rivers or height of the mountains.\nIt is hard only because of the fear we have of the\nmountains and the rivers. \"\nNot to be spoken, to be used only by translator\nDUONG DI KHO. KHONG KHO VI\nNGAN SONG CACH NUI MA KHO\nVI LONG NGUOI NGAI NUI E\nSONG\nAmerica who affers take reportunity advantage in gito fear It I know to you seing h\nComes\nto the these dustry the strength to eftend and the to Courage you on he Rag\nthat stunity & \"strants want as we doe all anywers"
}