Presented By: Center for Southeast Asian Studies
CSEAS Friday Lecture Series | After the War: Vietnamese Memory, Identity, and the Unfinished Stories of Vietnam
Lê Vân, University of Michigan
Please note: This lecture will be held in person and virtually on Zoom. If you would like to attend via Zoom, registration is required. Once you've registered, joining information will be sent to your email. Register for the Zoom webinar at: http://myumi.ch/G74ng
What happens to a war after the war is over?
Vietnamese journalist and documentary filmmaker Van Le reflects on the Vietnam War through the memories of those who lived through it. Drawing on her years of reporting and documentary filmmaking, she explores how the war continues to shape Vietnamese identity, relationships, and understandings of the past—both in Vietnam and across the diaspora. The talk focuses on personal memories of loss, fear, displacement, loyalty, and silence, and how trauma is remembered, carried, and passed across generations.
Van Le is an investigative journalist, author, and independent documentary filmmaker based in Vietnam. She is a 2026–2027 Knight-Wallace Journalism Fellow at the University of Michigan. She was a reporter for the acclaimed documentary The Stringer and has contributed environmental reporting to ProPublica. She previously worked as a feature writer and investigative journalist for Thanh Nien Newspaper, a national news outlet in Vietnam.
If there is anything we can do to make this event accessible to you, please contact us. Please be aware that advance notice is necessary as some accommodations may require more time for the university to arrange.
What happens to a war after the war is over?
Vietnamese journalist and documentary filmmaker Van Le reflects on the Vietnam War through the memories of those who lived through it. Drawing on her years of reporting and documentary filmmaking, she explores how the war continues to shape Vietnamese identity, relationships, and understandings of the past—both in Vietnam and across the diaspora. The talk focuses on personal memories of loss, fear, displacement, loyalty, and silence, and how trauma is remembered, carried, and passed across generations.
Van Le is an investigative journalist, author, and independent documentary filmmaker based in Vietnam. She is a 2026–2027 Knight-Wallace Journalism Fellow at the University of Michigan. She was a reporter for the acclaimed documentary The Stringer and has contributed environmental reporting to ProPublica. She previously worked as a feature writer and investigative journalist for Thanh Nien Newspaper, a national news outlet in Vietnam.
If there is anything we can do to make this event accessible to you, please contact us. Please be aware that advance notice is necessary as some accommodations may require more time for the university to arrange.