Culturally we need to think ahead 30 years and ask ourselves who we really want to be

Name:

Dominic Golding – Nguyen Hong Duc

History:

Left Vietnam in 1975 as a war orphan and was adopted by an Australian family. Now 28 years old, living in Melbourne. Returned to Vietnam in 1999 on a scholarship.

Occupation:

Artist, writer and assistant director. Worked at the Viet Youth Media Centre on plays such as ‘Viet Boys Down Under’ and ‘Aussie Bia Om’ and a University of Melbourne, Asialink ‘Asia Australia Leaders Program’ alumni (2001).

On Being Vietnamese:

Hmmm, the best thing about being Viet is being stubborn, determined , proud to rip off each other, able to hack (not me), placing ones culture over Aussie culture (ha), the nice houses we buy after working in factories and being able to give our kids sports cars, and to be able to stab some poor kid in the back at a nightclub.

Dreams:

To get away from the above generalisation, and to see ourselves as who we are, not who others want to see us as. Humans. I believe we MUST strongly back and support the good work young Vietnamese Australians are doing, and to not fall back on pissy community development projects that are too short term and only about numbers. Culturally we need to think ahead 30 years and ask ourselves who we really want to be, instead of being fixed on the past struggles.

Happy To Have Achieved:

Uni, scholarship, art works, performaces.

Vietnamese Mentors/Inspirations?

Trinh Thi Minh Ha – American film maker