Left Behind: The Children of War Part IV- The Lucky Ones

First Installment (link)


The Ones Who Found Homes

There are many layers to every issue, in our view, to do with the American War, the Vietnam War. The story of Amerasians and other orphans is no different. There were tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of babies and toddlers -- who were abandoned in the final days of the war. Some made it to orphanages, some were "promised" to anxious adoptive parents from around the globe and found lives of peace and plenty. These are their stories

They were the lucky ones.

But that, of course, is a matter of perspective. The tens of thousands of other babies who made it to the States outside of official adoptions, weren't so lucky. Grown now, mostly in their late thirties and into their forties- they are citizens of their adoptive countries in every way except one: they have been denied citizenship.  All these years later they are still registered as Permanent Resident Aliens The process is very expensive and they are not allowed to apply for 15 years if they don't speak English fluently! They can take the test at 5 years if they are fluent.
Still further degradation to an already immeasurably difficult life.

The Operation Babylift enterprise was put together under then-President Gerald R. Ford. Figures vary but officially, 2,000 children were airlifted out of Vietnam in the waning days of the American war- in Spring of 1975. Some were airlifted to the US while others found homes elsewhere.

"Babylift Babies", as they've often been called, were mostly kids who were brought from orphanages associated with religious and charitable organizations.

These are their stories. Now, as adults making their way as citizens of their adoptive nations, they are making their mark. Some are retracing the steps that brought them out of Vietnam. 

In a recent correspondence, our friend Ralf Lofstad who is currently in Saigon to gather with fellow OBL babies to remember their beginnings (in the largest ever effort of its kind-  Operation Babylift). Ralf reports that, after years of wonder and searching for his biological parents, he is at peace with his life and grateful for the love and encouragement of those he considers to be his true parents- the Lofstads of Norway. Here is his story:

From Norway- Ralf Lofstad- in his own words a

Ralf meets his adoptive parents

The Boy Nobody Wanted

From Australia- Cath Turner-in her own words b

The Story of Catherine Turner:  A Vietnamese Babylift Adoptee

Cath Turner as an infant

In our research, we came upon a woman who shared her journey with us with grace and honesty via email correspondence and a deeply moving documentary film. Catherine Turner, or Cath, as she is known opens her heart:

"Thanks for your email.  I read your website with great interest.

I certainly have mixed emotions about my adoption and being part of Operation Babylift.  I can say without a doubt that it has affected every single part of my life.  It has made me who I am, it has influenced every decision I’ve made and shaped my thoughts, attitudes and outlook on life.  I wouldn’t use the word ‘bitter’, but there have certainly been negative effects of being raised in Australia during that time.  I have struggled throughout my life with these and, at nearly 40-years-old, am only just starting to understand them fully."- Catherine Turner b 

Turner shares the process of her journey to find her biological mother and her own identity.

Courage, curiosity, and perseverance helped to answer many personal questions. Perhaps Turner's quest will encourage others to reach out. The film garnered numerous nods at film festivals including placing in the finals for the Gracie Awards and Amnesty International. The Australian journalist will be participating in a forum to be held at The Presidio in San Francisco this month to commemorate Operation Babylift. Here is her story:

VIDEO

So Close So Far Away

The Journey of Catherine Turner

a With permission from the author- Ralf Lofstad. English translation by: Liv Vilde Adams. We are eternally grateful for the contributions shared with us by these two fine people.
b We were so fortunate to come across Cath Turner, an award-winning Autralian journalist  currently living in Sydney working as a Senior Network Reporter for Channel 7. We thank Cath and honor the generous offering of her story, her journey.

Left Behind: The Children of War Part II - Operation Babylift

The War Winds Down- New Problems Arise

Not all Babylift children were babies.

History will record that the American war in Vietnam ended in 1973 with the signing of the Paris Peace Accords on January 27. Much controversy swirled around negotiations which carried on for 5 years (from 1968-1973), prolonging the war for Americans, which did not truly end until April 30, 1975- 2 years and tens of thousands of lives later. Meanwhile there were thousands of children living on the streets and in orphanages throughout the south. The official list of "sanctioned" orphanages was extensive. Most were operated by religious organizations while some were charitable foundations such as the world renowned Pearl S. Buck Foundation.

The status of many of these children varied and many stories are told today regarding how they came to be living in orphanages. Indeed, some were the sad result of murdered parents caught in the choke hold of war, while others were the product of families far too burdened to care for them. Still others were surrendered to these facilities by mothers who recognized that neither they or their children, some fathered by non-Vietnamese, would survive long in a society that looked down upon the children of mixed-races.

Babylift Children Were Adoptees

The thousands of babies and children who were a part of the US government-sanctioned 
Operation Babylift were previously assigned to adoptive families around the world. As conditions in South Vietnam deteriorated, humanitarian agencies appealed to the US government for the hasty evacuation of these soon-to-be adopted orphans. Many thousands, however, would be left behind.

The American President 

Gerald R. Ford, formerly Vice-President under Richard M. Nixon announced, on April 3, 1975 that arrangements were being made to transport thousands of refugees to safety. Communists in the North had launched major offensives into the northern part of South Vietnam causing thousands of people to flee further southward, crowding cities and creating a huge humanitarian crisis. 

USAF C-5A Galaxy Lifts off from Saigon
April 1975

Part of a Press Release outlining the President's directive:

"I have also directed American officials in Saigon to act immediately to cut red tape and bureaucratic obstacles preventing these children from coming to the United States.

"I have directed that C-5A planes and other aircraft , especially equipped to care for these orphans during the flight, be sent to Saigon. I expect the flights to begin within the next 36 to 48 hours. These orphans will be flown to Travis Air Force Base and other bases on the West Coast and cared for there." 

Complete, Official White House Press Release a

The South Falls

On March 30, 1975 Da Nang, South Vietnam's second largest city is overrun by North Vietnamese troops and captured. By the middle of the following month, Saigon was under attack. The chaos and panic had begun. Rumors abounded that the North Vietnamese army was rounding up anyone who had ties to the Americans and that they, most likely, would be killed. Fear ran through the many orphanages in the south where stories had reached them that the children and their caretakers, particularly those children fathered by Americans awould be slaughtered on site. Thousands of frightened people were pouring onto American bases and many of them left out on US helicopters heading for aircraft carriers waiting offshore. While Air Force planes collected and transported civilian American citizens and others to Clark Air Force Base b in the Philippines, to Thailand and other locations. Finally, on April 30, 1975 Saigon falls to the North.

North Vietnamese tank rolls into grounds of Presidential Palace
Saigon April 30, 1975

In the midst of all this, President Ford's initiative to carry orphaned children, some of them fathered by American military and civilian contractors, had been active. Flights were scheduled to depart from Tan Son Nhut Air Base and conditions were rapidly deteriorating. There were an estimated 70,000 orphans flown out of Vietnam. Thirty flights were planned to carry babies and children to safety. A week of "official" flights was scheduled while numerous private chartered and loaned planes also ferried orphans away from Vietnam. The Australian RAAF contributed several Hercules aircraft and crew- Royal Australian Air Force Aids Babylift

RAAF air crew comfort babies before take-off during the 2nd
airlift of orphans from Saigon's Tan Son Nhut AB

As Panic Sets in Tragedy Strikes

On the second day of the Babylift flights on April 4 1975, a huge US Air Force C-5A Galaxy transport experienced mechanical failure over the South China Sea, forcing it to attempt a return to Tan Sohn Nhut Airbase in Saigon. The aircraft carried 300 kids and dozens of adults. The plane was unable to land safely, skidding across the runway and into a dike where it fell apart. There were 170 survivors, most of them badly injured. The decision was made to carry on with the flights as there were thousands of children yet to evacuate with the situation deteriorating and unstable. On the same day as the crash, a chartered Pan American Airways 747 hired by Holt International carrying 409 children and 60 adults took off. According to the website Adopt Vietnam 1200 children were moved out of South Vietnam by air in the 24 hours after the C-5A crash.

Pilot, Crew and others Discuss the Crash of the USAF C-5A
Video: Pilot, Crew, and People on Ground

Eyewitness to History: BROCK TOWNSENDc Bin Hoa AB 1967-75
A civilian employee shares his memories of the Babylift and the crash of the C5a
Vietnam Babylift: My Personal Story


US Air Force Flight Nurse Dies in C-5A Crash Captain Mary Therese Klinker lost her life on that day. She is one of the eight American military women listed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall

Children peer from the Windows of
giant aircraft that will carry them across the sea.

Next Up: Controversy follows the Babylift while Congress debates allowing Amerasians to emigrate.


a From the official White House Press Release April 3, 1975, Office of the White House Press Secretary, San Diego, California copy of which is taken from the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library, Grand Rapids, MI www.fordlibrarymuseum
b <http://www.vietnam.ttu.edu/virtualarchive/items.php?item=17680102009>. The Vietnam Center, Texas Tech University
c All quotes, photos and links attached to BROCK TOWNSEND are by permission of the subject.

Canadians Serve

CANADIANS JOIN

Although the government in Ottawa was not technically supporting the US and its allies in the Vietnam war, many Canadian men either enlisted in the US Army and Marines Corps or "allowed" themselves to be drafted into service.

Like everything else about the Vietnam war, numbers and stories vary. Some wildly. Protests were just as furious in Canada as they were in other parts of the world. The difference was many Americans resisting the draft went to Canada where they were, if not welcomed, accommodated. Many still live there today. When then President Gerald Ford announced a "conditional amnesty" shortly after taking office, the offer was looked upon coolly. Ford issued a proclamation on September 16, 1974 a week after giving Richard Nixon a full pardon. Both of these actions were looked upon with suspicion.

Canada was officially a "non-belligerent" in the Vietnam war but did send foreign aid to South Vietnam and did not interfere with its citizens joining American armed forces. There had been a long history of US soldiers serving with Canadians in both World Wars and Korea. US soldiers served with Canada in the World Wars before the US officially declared.

Canadian businesses remained arm's length when they shipped billions of dollars of goods for the American war machine to the US:

 "500 firms sold $2.5 billion of war materials (ammunition, napalm, aircraft engines and explosives) to the Pentagon. Another $10 billion in food, beverages, berets and boots for the troops was exported to the U.S., as well as nickel, copper, lead, brass and oil for shell casings, wiring, plate armour and military transport. In Canada unemployment fell to record low levels of 3.9%"^[4]

In addition, other military supplies and raw materials useful in their manufacture including napalm, Agent Orange and ammunition. As long as the goods were not going directly to Vietnam, they violated no international treaties.

Canadians fought alongside American, Australian, New Zealand, South Korean and other allies in the war against the North Vietnamese. Their return home was no less uncomfortable than their counterparts as anti-war demonstrations were very heated in their homeland.

Since these soldiers and marines were the "property" of the American military, they were not provided with any aid- health or otherwise by their own government. Many stayed in the US while others blended back into Canadian society as best they could.

Canadian Vietnam Veteran's Association (Manitoba) (link)

Eventually groups of veterans joined together and formed support groups. There are several Canadian Vietnam Veteran's memorials across Canada.

Letter Home

It has been very difficult to nail down just how many Canadians served in Vietnam, how many were killed and wounded, how many missing in action and, finally, how many might have been captured and imprisoned by the North. The fact is, all Canadians were serving with US military forces and wearing American uniforms. Some were citizens of Canada and others had become citizens of the US. Regardless, we bow our heads in solemn memory of those boys who died, those who were wounded and those who have survived to suffer along with their brethren. This war did not only tear the American generation of that time in two- it broke hearts across the globe.

To Those Canadians Who Served

Welcome Home

To Those Who Perished

Rest in Peace