Rep. Quang Nguyen

Quang Nguyen escaped Vietnam a week before Saigon fell to communist forces in 1975. At the age of 12, he was separated from his parents and unsure what tomorrow would bring — but he never gave up hope.

Raised in a military family who risked everything to fight the spread of communism in Vietnam, Quang Nguyen understood the price and the importance of freedom. His firsthand experience of seeing the brutal impact of communism on his family, his friends, and his country would leave a lasting mark and shape his appreciation for democracy. After making the United States his new home, Quang achieved the American dream, graduating from college, founding a business, and eventually getting elected to the Arizona House of Representatives.

Through his tireless work to pass HB 2008, Arizona now requires students to learn about the courageous stories of those who have fled communism as part of a strengthened civics education. As Rep. Quang Nguyen remarks, “100 million people have been killed by communism…and it has not ended.”

VOC is honored to have helped produce Quang Nguyen’s witness story in partnership with the University of Arizona’s Center for the Philosophy of Freedom as part of a three-film series for the Center’s Oral History Collection, a tremendous resource for students and teachers throughout Arizona.