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Books > Humanities > History > American history > From 1900 > Postwar, from 1945
In 1961, the U.S. government established the first formalized
provisions for intercountry adoption just as it was expanding
America's involvement with Vietnam. Adoption became an increasingly
important portal of entry into American society for Vietnamese and
Amerasian children, raising questions about the United States'
obligations to refugees and the nature of the family during an era
of heightened anxiety about U.S. global interventions. Whether
adopting or favoring the migration of multiracial individuals,
Americans believed their norms and material comforts would salve
the wounds of a divisive war. However, Vietnamese migrants
challenged these efforts of reconciliation. As Allison Varzally
details in this book, a desire to redeem defeat in Vietnam, faith
in the nuclear family, and commitment to capitalism guided American
efforts on behalf of Vietnamese youths. By tracing the stories of
Vietnamese migrants, however, Varzally reveals that while many had
accepted separations as a painful strategy for survival in the
midst of war, most sought, and some eventually found, reunion with
their kin. This book makes clear the role of adult adoptees in
Vietnamese and American debates about the forms, privileges, and
duties of families, and places Vietnamese children at the center of
American and Vietnamese efforts to assign responsibility and find
peace in the aftermath of conflict.
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