All posts tagged: Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay

Saymoukda Vongsay unpacks family, migration and identity in debut children’s book

Photo credit to Saymouka Duangphouxay Vongsay When writer Saymoukda Vongsay first wrote “When Everything Was Everything,” a poem depicting the Lao refugee experience, she didn’t expect it to transform into what it is today. In her first children’s book of the same name, Vongsay reveals glimpses into her childhood as a young Lao girl navigating America with her displaced family. Touching on universal and present topics like refugee experiences, class, and family,  the story connects with children and adults of all ages. Although the book was just released this past month, its inception spans even farther. Vongsay said she wrote “When Everything Was Everything” around seven years ago at a writers workshop for women of color as a last-ditch “hurrah” before quitting her writing career. One prompt asked the group to think of a time in their lives that involved a lot of movement or migration and Vongsay said she thought back to her early years. “I just created this list of all the times I felt my family moved or migrated,” she said. “I was …

10 Lao Diaspora Women You Should Know in 2018

It’s not every day that there’s a holiday celebrating the greatness that’s women. #InternationalWomensDay is celebrated in almost every country in the world except for America– surprise! Not only should you acknowledge the great women in your life right before your eyes; but learn from the inspirational shakers and movers in our community who have blazed trails and opened pathways for others along with them. You may be lucky enough to know some of them and even luckier to have worked with them. These are women who have done inspiring work to lift their field and communities with them and we know they’ll continue to put us in awe throughout 2018. This isn’t an exhaustive list and no particular order, but it’s a great teaser. Keep watch, Lao America. Catzie Vilayphonh runs Laos in the House out of Philly doing cultural productions and storytelling. She’s a spoken word artist who was half of the now-retired badass duo, Yellow Rage. Channapha Khamvongsa leads Legacies of War out of DC, pressing our top officials to up the budget and …