Interview with Si
From Cambodia to the OR
Introduction: For my interview, I was fortunate enough to interview my Aunt’s good friend who is family to us. His name is Sihong Suy and he goes by Si, and he came to the United States at around 10 years old from Cambodia. Through this interview, I was able to learn more about the struggles that Si and his family faced while escaping the Khmer Rouge and coming to the United States. My interview occurred at a public library near my home in Richmond Virginia where Si graciously met with me after rounding on his morning patients.
Background: Si and his family have a fascinating and heart-tugging story. His entire family was born in Cambodia. He lived with his mother, father, and two older sisters in Phnom Penh Cambodia. When he was only 3 or 4 years old the Khmer Rouge invaded Cambodia. The Khmer Rouge was a radical communist movement that eliminated social classes and murdered innocent people. For context, they killed almost 80% of the population and the genocide lasted 5 years. Because of this he and his family had to leave their homes and most of their belongings and Hope that in some way they were able to make it out alive and start over.
Journey: After leaving his home he and his family faced many challenges that would ultimately lead them to Richmond Virginia. I was able to learn a lot about Si’s experience in coming to the United States and how he and his family were able to survive such a communist movement. Since Si was three years old at the time when the Khmer Rouge invaded Cambodia, his memory didn’t start until about 5 years old when he was considered old enough to work. At the age of five to survive he and his two older siblings had to tend to water buffaloes to make money and to blend in with society. Si describes this process as taking out the water buffaloes feeding them cleaning up after them and returning them to their stalls. He and his siblings did this from sun up to sundown every single day. While he was doing this process his parents, aunts, and uncles were collecting rice, planting crops, and clearing out the jungle.
Migration: A few years passed and he and his family made the journey to leave Cambodia and move to Vietnam. He had family in Vietnam and family in France so his parents knew they wanted to go somewhere where they had family. When he mentioned this move close to family I immediately thought about Immigrant Harrisonburg and how we discussed how many immigrants came to Harrisonburg because they had families that had settled down here and started businesses and created a new life. Si and his family Tried to find a country that would sponsor them because financially under the Khmer Rouge they had lost everything. They were only able to be in Vietnam for about a year and a half until they had to go back to Cambodia because they couldn’t find somebody to sponsor them. After returning to Cambodia they went to Thailand where they were able to find sponsorship from a Catholic Church in Richmond Virginia. the church transferred them to the Philippines and put them through what he described as a resettlement program where he and his family would be taught the basics of English to prepare them for the United States.When talking with Si I was interested in how he and his family got from place to place being that he and his siblings were under the age of 10. He described a very interesting process where his father would take a large Pole or a large stick and stick it between the spokes of a bicycle and have a hanging basket on each side where he and his siblings what’s it in and his father would ride the bike and was able to transport the children. Since he and his family lost everything I was interested in the different weather conditions that they had to endure. Si told me a very real and raw story about having to put manure on their feet to keep them from literally getting burnt by the hotness of the pavement. For reference today December 9th, 2024 the high in Cambodia is 90° so imagine the excruciating temperatures of 110 to 120° in the summer. Being that they had little clothes no shoes and no money the way that they got food and water was very sparse. They were only allowed to have water but every so often per week and usually his parents would sacrifice their water and give the water to the children. The way that they would get food is by finding insects, tree roots, and natural foods that were along their journey. Si mentioned that for their stomachs to feel full They would essentially eat charcoal even though it had no nutritional value, it was simply a way to feel as if they had eaten.
Integration: Si was around 10 years old when the Catholic Church sponsored his family to come to the United States. When they first arrived in the United States they lived in a small apartment not far from a local church and local school. He was able to get enrolled in school and thought that it could have been 4th or 5th grade at the time. He and his sisters were enrolled in ESL courses which is English as a second language and taught more and more about the English language. After discussing his enrollment into ESL I recalled several discussions from our class time, we discussed the many programs that the elementary, middle, and high schools in the area have to help students be integrated into the environment. He also spoke about his parents and how they were able to learn more English, there was a local church near where their apartment was and they held my classes to help with the language barrier. In our lectures, we talked about the job opportunities for immigrants who are just coming to the United States and Si said his parents would work at nursing homes doing cleaning, food serving, and working in the kitchen for a couple of years until they were able to move and work in a factory a couple years after they were settled in. in class we discussed that a lot of immigrants who come to the United States have to work the really hard jobs and unfortunately that is the reality for every family. But in talking with Si, it was very inspirational to find out that because he had to see his parents work these jobs he knew that he could put in the work and he could face any challenge imaginable he wanted to be able to give back to his parents and help provide for them and he did exactly that.
Challenges: Of the many challenges that are faced when coming to a new country, Si was very fortunate to not face many big challenges. His family had a very positive attitude about their Journey to the United States. Because of their positive attitude, any challenge that stood in their way was essentially a small roadblock that would lead them to something greater. The hardships that they faced in their Journey to the United States made them grateful for all the things they had. During the Khmer Rouge Millions of people died, his grandmother and all four of his aunt’s children died of starvation while trying to leave Cambodia. Both of his parents and all of his siblings were able to survive and coming to the United States was extremely rare. The fact that they were able to just come to the United States as an entire family was described by Si as divine intervention.
Success: One of the many reasons I picked Si for this project was because of how amazing he has been able to create a life for himself and his family. Si went to William and Mary College where he stated that he learned many valuable skills that prepared him for postgrad work. One of the many things I admire about Si is his ability to turn anything into something interesting and exciting. He enjoyed college and all the experiences that came with it. Specifically, the fact that he would look at it from the point of view that if he can go to college for 4 years then he can have a job for 4 years, and the employer will know that he is an asset for at least 4 years post-grad. He looked at College as something that helps you persevere, and for someone who had a very hard time in his younger years, perseverance has always been something that has stuck with him. He shared with me that his mother was unfortunately hit by a drunk driver thankfully she was okay but that challenge deterred him from going to medical school right out of college. Because of his kind and gracious heart, he decided to get a job and help pay for all of his mother’s medical bills and treatments to help her get better.
Conclusion: Si went to medical school At the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill where he obtained his medical degree. He then went on to do his Residency at MCV, and he is currently an acute care surgeon with Bon Secours St Mary’s Hospital. When I asked him why he wanted to be a doctor he had a very touching answer. When he was on his way to the United States his foot got mangled in the spokes of the bicycle. If it wasn’t for the doctors who were along the trails and dirt roads to help him and give him antibiotics he could have lost his leg. From a very young age, a seed was planted in his mind that a good person did a good thing and helped him, and he wanted to be that good person and do good things to help others because of how great an impact it made on his life.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): [00:00:00] Today is Wednesday, November 27th at 1113 a. m. at the North Courthouse Road Library, and I am here with Mr.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): Si Suy and today we will be doing the Sociology to Immigration, Immigration Project. Um,
Speaker 1 (Rachel): SI ,
Speaker 1 (Rachel): could you tell me a little bit about your story, where you were born?
Speaker 2 (SI): Hey, Rachel so, thanks for asking me to be a part of your project.
Speaker 2 (SI): Uh, so, I was born in Cambodia. Uh, Back in 1973, so I’m a little older, but, um, I came to the United States probably when I was, um, 10 years old.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): Can you tell me about the location you grew up in in Cambodia? What were your living conditions?
Speaker 2 (SI): So, initially, I’m not sure if you know about, uh, Story in Cambodia.
Speaker 2 (SI): There’s, um, basically during the early seventies, there was a takeover of Cambodia by the Khmer Rouge, which is the communist party of Cambodia. So we live in a [00:01:00] city called Phnom Penh, which is the capital of Cambodia. But then the Khmer Rouge took over in 1975. It was basically a coup of the government.
Speaker 2 (SI): And so we live in a fairly affluent, uh, area of Phnom Penh before the takeover. But once the
Khmer Rouge
Speaker 2 (SI): takeover, we had to, um, they move everybody. They force us to live in little communities, rural communities , you know, as part of their like communism, um, indoctrination program, I guess, where everybody is required to move to the countryside and work on farm and things like that.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): How old were you at this time?
Speaker 2 (SI): Uh, it’s probably about, well I don’t start remembering stuff until I was about like three or four years old, but around three or four
Speaker 1 (Rachel): at the time. And did they, um, make you do any physical labor at your age?
Speaker 2 (SI): Yeah, so, so when I was five, we basically, so, the process that works under
Speaker 2 (SI): [00:02:00] Khmer Rouge
Speaker 2 (SI): Communism is, You know, they, um, they kind of separate the family and the kids usually go and work attending water buffalo.
Speaker 2 (SI): So, so, you know, if you’re five, six years old, you have to watch water buffalo. So for the entire day, you basically take out multiple water buffaloes and then feed them and then bring them home in the evening. So you leave at like seven, 8 AM and come. back at like six or seven p. m. in the evening. The older adults, they go and work in rice fields and things like that, planting crop and clearing like the jungle and things like that.
Speaker 2 (SI): So mainly, yeah, as five or six years old, you’re required to work.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): Okay. And did you have any siblings at that time?
Speaker 2 (SI): I do. I have two sisters, uh, older sisters, um, both of them kind of had to do the same thing I did with just going out, attending water buffaloes.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): And when you were on your journey to the United States, how was
Speaker 1 (Rachel): that process
Speaker 2 (SI): uh, it was challenging. So, you know, [00:03:00] if you know anything about the Khmer Rouge, like they killed a bunch of people. It’s like a third of the population was wiped out by genocide. Um, and that’s usually it starts with the more affluent members of society. So like any businessmen, doctors, monks. Um, so anybody who has an education and who, um, were kind of well off were basically killed off essentially.
Speaker 2 (SI): So we had to pretend to be like, you know. You know, your average, uh, farm worker and things like that to survive. But, um, in regards to your question about coming here. So the Khmer Rouge, they were, uh, beaten by the, like before we were slaughtered, they were beaten by the Vietnamese. So the Vietnamese invaded, there was an ongoing war between Vietnam and Cambodia.
Speaker 2 (SI): So the Vietnamese invaded Cambodia and they were able to liberate us. Before like more people were killed by the Khmer Rouge. So once they were liberated, [00:04:00] we knew we had to find a country that was free. Um, we didn’t, we know we didn’t want to live under communism anymore. So we went, actually went to Vietnam.
Speaker 2 (SI): So we lived as, um, immigrants in Vietnam or refugees more than immigrants in Vietnam for a year and a half, trying to find a place to get to like France or, or to just a free country. Um, my aunt
lives in france .
Speaker 2 (SI): So we, she was trying to sponsor us there, but we had no success there. So we went back to Cambodia and then we tried going to another country, which was Thailand.
Speaker 2 (SI): So, you know, through refugee camps and stuff, we were able to get to Thailand. Um, so from Thailand, we got sponsored by Catholic church, um, here in Richmond, Virginia. And so we, uh, after they sponsored us, we went to the Philippines. and stay in the Philippines for like six [00:05:00] months. It’s kind of like a resettlement program where they kind of teach you some English and things like that.
Speaker 2 (SI): So after that, that’s when we came directly to Richmond from the Philippines.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): So how did you get from place to place? What was the transportation like?
Speaker 2 (SI): So, yeah, so a lot of it is it’s walking. So we walk, I don’t know, 500, a thousand miles, maybe back and forth, but we were able to, um, is bicycling. So also, so, um, Like my father, like I was too young, my sister, because we were too young to ride a bicycle across the country.
Speaker 2 (SI): So he would tie two long poles to a bicycle. And so I would sit in the front and my two sisters would sit in the back on the poles. And basically, like, for a pretty long portion of the trip from Cambodia to Thailand, we were on bicycles. Where, it’s like my father’s You know, taking the three of us on the bicycle and then my mother rides her own bicycle.
Speaker 2 (SI): So basically bicycling and walking. A lot of times, it’s a jungle. Parts of it, [00:06:00] it’s uh, it’s almost jungle, so a lot of it is walking too. So, so he would carry me. On his back sometimes to like a piggyback on to get from point A to point B.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): So when you would take, um, stops and rests, what were the areas where you would stop and rest in?
Speaker 2 (SI): It just depends a lot of times along the side of the road. Um, there’s a lot of like, you know, bandits and things like that. Sometimes we’ll stop by a village and ask people for water and stuff. So, um. But it’s just, um, yeah, you have to watch out for a lot of, um, especially in the nighttime when you walk for a lot of, uh, you know, people can rob us and things like that.
Speaker 2 (SI): So, so it’s basically stopping alongside of the road and, uh, asking for food, for water.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): Were you traveling alone or were you with other people that were leaving Cambodia?
Speaker 2 (SI): Sometimes we travel alone. Sometimes there’s like a stream of two or three families traveling [00:07:00] together. It’s not like a caravan that you’ve seen on TV.
Speaker 2 (SI): Most of the time, it’s like just a couple of families here and there just joining together for safety and walking.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): So moving on to, um, some of the different, um, processes of coming to the United States, um, how was the immigration process to your knowledge since you were of such young age?
Speaker 2 (SI): Yeah. So, so I guess technically, We’re considered refugees because when, um, you know, Vietnam back then, you know, there was a war between Vietnam and the United States and there was a push for the U S because, you know, South Vietnam was.
Speaker 2 (SI): I guess they were fighting with the U. S. against North, uh, Vietnam. So at the time, most of the Vietnamese people, it’s kind of like [00:08:00] Cuba, where if a person from Cuba was able to get in the United States, you become a citizen or something. Or that’s my understanding. It may not be the policy now, but So the United States was sponsoring or they were telling Vietnamese people if you can get to a free country, we’ll take you.
Speaker 2 (SI): Um, at least that’s the thought we had at the time. So, so we went to Thailand into a Vietnamese refugee camp. And because we lived in Vietnam for a little bit and we spoke Vietnamese as well. Um, so we just kind of, you know, um, became like a Vietnamese refugee. And then, um, we stayed in, uh, Thailand and kind of like a, uh, It’s not a concentration camp, but it’s a, it’s technically a refugee camp, but they kind of treat us like a concentration, where, you know, there’s barbed wires, you only get water like once a day, and everybody’s kept inside a compound, and, you know, sometimes [00:09:00] we were starved, sometimes sold some, but we get assistance from, like if you have relatives in another country, they’re able to send some money.
Speaker 2 (SI): Sometimes the money gets through, a lot of times it doesn’t. So we live in. kind of these refugee camps in Thailand for, um, I think nine months. And so at that point initially we just wanted to go to France because that’s where my aunts were and they was trying to sponsor us. But since there wasn’t a way to get to France.
Speaker 2 (SI): We just wanted to get to a free country. So we just throw our name out there to any free country. So I think, uh, the Catholic church in Richmond had some, you know, people who were willing to sponsor, so they sponsored us and that’s when we were able to Get out from the camps in Thailand. To go to the Philippines.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): And how did you, was it similar to your journey, um, that you mentioned prior? Did you have to essentially walk to the United States? No,
Speaker 2 (SI): [00:10:00] so we’ve, so once you get sponsored, you know, it’s hard to get sponsored and especially if you’re living in a camp. And, um, but once you get sponsored. The process becomes, you know, a lot less, uh, challenging in terms of getting to a free country.
Speaker 2 (SI): So when we get sponsored, they flew us from Thailand to the Philippines and we stay in this, um, this open area. It’s kind of like in the woods, but it’s like a very nice, um, Kind of like resettlement camp and it’s like out in the open, you know, there’s no barbed wires keeping you locked in. You’re free to roam.
Speaker 2 (SI): And so in the Philippines is where you have like missionaries and other groups of, um, Doctors without Borders, missionaries and several other organizations who are there to help us. And so some of the missionaries would like bring movies and things like that to show us to try to get us to [00:11:00] learn English.
Speaker 2 (SI): And then, uh, they have, uh, classes for, kids to try to teach them English. So we stayed here. I believe it’s four to five months.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): Okay. So, um, after you transitioned here, when you arrived, did you arrive in Richmond, Virginia?
Speaker 2 (SI): Yes. So I came, some people go to California and then they transferred, but Yeah, we came directly because our sponsor was in Richmond, Virginia.
Speaker 2 (SI): We came here and we stayed in like a refugee house for like a month or so until they help us find like a an apartment for us to stay in.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): And at that point, how old were you then?
Speaker 2 (SI): Uh, 10 years old. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): And did you get enrolled in school? How was the process of learning a new language for you?
Speaker 2 (SI): Yeah, so, so when we came, yeah, I started.
Speaker 2 (SI): I guess probably, I can’t remember, maybe fourth grade? Um, and you know, it’s, it’s challenging because we learned some English in the Philippines, but not enough to [00:12:00] like be immersed in a school and be able to talk and all that. So yeah, but we were straight out of, uh, Um, I guess out of the Philippines going, uh, directly to classes.
Speaker 2 (SI): So it’s challenging because you don’t really know what people are saying and all that. But they did have a program called ESL. It’s like one of the periods we get to take and it’s called English as a Second Language. So there they helped us. You know, teach us English and then, uh, but we are still involved in the regular, you know, school classes that are like a fourth or fifth grader would take, um, but, but the ESL did help us and just being immersed with other students also helps because like the best way to learn a language is to just be thrown in there and try to, figure things out.
Speaker 2 (SI): So, so that was helpful. So that’s why a lot of younger kids who come here, they can pick up English a lot quicker than the parents. Well, maybe part of it is because kids learn quicker, but, [00:13:00] but part of it is they’re so immersed in it. Whereas the parents, you know, they usually, uh, are less immersed in the culture when they start out.
Speaker 2 (SI): So a lot of kids do speak fluent. English simply because they’re required to or they’re forced to, not forced to, but they’re obligated to.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): And did your whole family, once they arrived and were immersed in school, um, did your siblings and your parents also learn English?
Speaker 2 (SI): So my, um, My sisters, yeah, they attend, like my middle sister attends middle school and then my older sister also attended middle school.
Speaker 2 (SI): So they were going through the similar process I did of taking ESL class. My parents, they, um, they have to work. So, um, but they do take some, you know, there’s, uh, church near where we live called Three Chopt Presbyterian, I believe. So they offered some night school. So they’ll go in and take some night classes at [00:14:00] the church.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): And what were the jobs for your parents? Like, do you know what they did?
Speaker 2 (SI): Yeah. So basically. minimum wage stuff. So they, um, they work, uh, initially when they came for the first three or four years, they work, um, at a nursing home, like, you know, uh, basically cleaning the facility, cleaning, you know, working in the kitchen, cleaning plates, making and serving food and things like that.
Speaker 2 (SI): So basically for like three years or so they did that. that and then afterwards they went to work in a factory.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): And did you face any challenges in your elementary, middle and or high school?
Speaker 2 (SI): Um, you know, some by and large, like, uh, I mean, just learning the language and the difficult understanding of the language and, uh, you know, some of the challenge, I think that kind of, it’s not traumatic, but it’s always, it’s, um, unsettling when I think about it sometimes is when, you know, you just came in, you [00:15:00] barely speak English.
Speaker 2 (SI): And a lot of classes, the teachers ask students to read in front of class. So, so that was one of the more challenging. It’s like when a teacher asks you to read an excerpt or a paragraph from a book or something, it’s challenging. And so that’s, that’s challenging. But otherwise, you know, Most of the teachers were great and, uh, yeah, I didn’t really have any major issues.
Speaker 2 (SI): The first year, I, I struggled, but then I, um, had a really good teacher. I still remember her, Ms. Jones, who was, like, extremely encouraging. And because of her encouragement, I was able to excel academically. So after the first year or so, I kind of picked up English better, and then I started excelling. And, uh, and did pretty well academically.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): What would you say your, um, best subject was in school?
Speaker 2 (SI): Well, initially, everything we start out was always, um, It’s always, uh, [00:16:00] math, right? Because most Asian kids, you know, math is a universal language. We can, you know You know, you don’t have to know English to know math. So, so it started out as math, but then, uh, surprisingly, because I had to learn English, my strongest point was spelling.
Speaker 2 (SI): So, like, I won spell, like, after the second year, I was kind of winning spelling bee. Not like for the state or anything, but for at least for the school. So, so spelling was my, my strong point and, uh, math, um, and grammars just came with time.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): And what’s your highest level of education?
Speaker 2 (SI): Uh, it’ll be postgraduate.
Speaker 2 (SI): So I did, um, I went to college and then I went to, uh, went to college at William Mary. And then I worked for Few years in banking. And then I went to UNC, chapel Hill [00:17:00] for medical school, and I, I did a surgical residency at, um, at MCV. So postgraduate work.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): And, um, in school, your undergraduate degree, what was your major?
Speaker 1 (Rachel): Do you remember? Uh,
Speaker 2 (SI): I started out in pre-med. Okay. But then I, uh, my mother got hit by a hit and run drunk driver And so the family had a lot of bills. Like, you know, there was, uh. enormous amount of financial pressure on the family. So I switched to finance because then I can, you know, finish school quickly, get a job, make some money.
Speaker 2 (SI): So I switched from pre med to finance on end of my sophomore year. And then I, um, went and worked for, um, corporate finance for five years and then, well, investments in corporate finance for five years. And then when I was able to help the family some, I came back and did, uh, my pre med, well not pre med, my medical school track.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): And what led you to [00:18:00] medical school?
Speaker 2 (SI): Um, I think I was interested in, uh, medical school for a while because when I was, one of the things when I was traveling from Cambodia to Thailand, My foot got caught in the spokes of a bicycle. You know, you have four people on a bike going down hill and my foot got caught and it kind of mangled my left foot and I couldn’t walk.
Speaker 2 (SI): That’s part of the reason my father was carrying me half the trip, you know, across Cambodia. Um, so when I went to a refugee camp on the outskirts, like on the border of Thailand and Cambodia. There were a lot of doctors, like volunteer doctors who come and help us and then they help nurse. Like I, I thought they had to amputate my leg at the time.
Speaker 2 (SI): So, um, so they were able to help and, um, you know, clean my wound, you know, treat me with antibiotics and things. And then over time my leg healed. So, so that placed . an impression on me. Um, um, But [00:19:00] the fascination with medicine also is a part of it.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): And are you comfortable sharing what you do for a living currently?
Speaker 2 (SI): Uh, yeah, so I work as an acute care surgeon at, um, St. Mary Hospital, which is one of the hospitals in Richmond, Virginia. So, uh, yeah, I have great colleagues I work with, um, enjoy. Working with patients and, uh, and working with the families of the patients. So, yeah, that’s, um, it’s been a journey, but medicine has its challenges and a lot of hours, but, but it’s, it’s rewarding as well.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): And your siblings, um, how are, how was their transition here to the United States?
Speaker 2 (SI): Um, yeah, they, they did pretty well. So, my, um, my middle sister, she, um, she’s currently, um, Doing pharmacy techniques. She’s a pharmacy technician and Northern Virginia and she enjoys her work. My older sister. She, um, got a [00:20:00] PhD in like, Uh, Bioengineering or something.
Speaker 2 (SI): And so she’s doing she has her own lab and she runs a cancer Uh, research lab in Georgetown, but she just moved to Tampa. And so she’s running a lab, a cancer research lab in, uh, Tampa, Florida, right now.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): That’s, that’s amazing. So, um, also say as your family coming to the United States, how would you say it changed your life or did it?
Speaker 2 (SI): Oh yeah, definitely. I think it’s, um, it’s definitely a, uh, change for the better because, um, you know, in the opportunities, I think in the United States. I know people are like, well, we don’t get the same privilege. Like some people get more advantage over others. And I sense that’s true, but also I think the United States is one of the few countries that offers a lot of opportunity.
Speaker 2 (SI): Even though on the surface it [00:21:00] doesn’t look like there’s much opportunity there, but if you really work at it, there are people who are along, who are able to come along your side and help you achieve those goals. Um, I think the opportunities, if you work hard, if you scrape, um, and you put your ego aside and do things, you know, manual, manual labor, if you work hard, you will succeed.
Speaker 2 (SI): You know, it may not be immediate, but, but I think that’s one of the few. US is one of few places where you can succeed if you work hard.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): Now, since coming to the United States, have you returned to Cambodia?
Speaker 2 (SI): I have not. My family, uh, you know, my parents, my sisters have, I have not. Um, simply because it’s. It was like a traumatic experience back there.
Speaker 2 (SI): You know, when you see people getting killed, when you see dead people lying on the streets and rotting and all that. So it’s, it’s still a bit traumatic for me. So, um, [00:22:00] so I, I haven’t gone back.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): So you did see some very hard to see things as you were traveling here? Oh
Speaker 2 (SI): yeah, there’s, you know, during the Khmer Rouge, you know, people constantly die, you know, of starvation and mostly of starvation.
Speaker 2 (SI): Some of, you know, just they were being killed. Um, so, but most of them died of starvation. And then, um, you know, during the war, there’s plenty of people. You walk across the country and there’s people lying on the side of road dead. Some of them they’ll rob at bandits and kill others, you know, were killed as the Vietnamese invade.
Speaker 2 (SI): And the Khmer Rouge, a lot of times, instead of leaving. People alone, they’ll kill the people as the, the, um, as the Vietnamese invade Cambodia, the Khmer Rouge would just kill people along the way.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): So, um, you said there were people who had died of starvation. Um, how did you and your family get food?
Speaker 2 (SI): Yeah, so it’s fortunate.
Speaker 2 (SI): Um, it’s interesting because our [00:23:00] family, like, Our whole family survived intact, and that’s very rare. Um, I think it depends on, like, we were, I guess, going towards, we live near Vietnam, like in Cambodia, when, when they force us into these rural areas. But for example, my aunt and uncle, they had four kids who were a couple years older than me.
Speaker 2 (SI): All the four kids died of starvation. My grandmother died of starvation. Um, Yeah, a lot of people will kill. Yeah, I guess it’s, you can say, divine intervention that our family somehow is protected. But I can tell you, it’s a lot of, um, you know, food wasn’t available. Like, we all starve. Like, I was eating whatever I can find.
Speaker 2 (SI): Like, crickets, rats, mice, snakes, frogs. Well, frogs, I guess, is common anywhere. It’s not like, but you know, anything we can find. Like, at one point, I was so hungry. Like, for like two years. It’s like, I was eating charcoal, [00:24:00] like I was so hungry, I ate, like, you know, just burn wood and eat charcoal. It’s no nutritional value, but, but at certain points when you’re so hungry, you just need to eat something, get something in your stomach.
Speaker 2 (SI): So I was eating charcoal, and uh, and you know, and a, um, so there are a lot of rice paddies, so sometimes you can steal, Rice is still growing and then eat them, but if you get caught, you know, you can get killed. But, um, but yeah, so some, uh, you know, just whatever we can. Um, we eat a lot of roots, like some trees we find the roots are edible, so we’ll dig up tree roots and eat them.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): Were you ever sick on your journey here?
Speaker 2 (SI): You know, besides getting my foot mangled, uh, no, I was pretty healthy the whole time. Okay.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): As well as your family?
Speaker 2 (SI): Yeah, I mean, we have the occasional, so the, you know, the problem with, uh, [00:25:00] living under communism or the, you know, Khmer Rouge version of communism .
Speaker 2 (SI): Anyway, it’s like, if you, you know, the common phrase, he who does not work shall not eat. So basically you don’t really get sick. You just either live or die. You know, if you get sick, you basically, if you don’t work, you die. Cause they won’t feed you. Um, so yeah, so if we get sick, we either pretend not to be sick or we just ignore being sick and work.
Speaker 2 (SI): Um, so yeah, There have been multiple instances where we get sick, but we just, you know, you can’t take a day off or anything when you’re sick, you just go to work, and if you don’t work, you don’t eat, and you die. So everybody either, you know, work and live, or get sick and die, so.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): And have you since returned to France to see your family in France?
Speaker 2 (SI): Yeah, I’ve been to France twice now. Once with my sisters and once with Amy. Um, so yeah, and I’ve visited my aunt several times, so. [00:26:00] And I’m glad I came to the U. S. and not went to France to be honest with you. So,
Speaker 1 (Rachel): so, um, a couple of last questions before we, um, conclude today. Um, your college experience mm-hmm
Speaker 1 (Rachel): Um, did you enjoy your college experience or did you wish that you were to have, um, gone into blue collar?
Speaker 2 (SI): Uh, definitely college. I know nowadays, uh, like what the, um. You know, the value of college back then, the value of college was like, you have to go to college if you want to get nowadays. I know there are a lot of trade school and things like that where college may not be the best thing for some people, and I agree with that, but definitely I thought college was, um, it was challenging, but I think it’s definitely a stepping stone to more opportunities, you know, like if I hadn’t gone to college, I think it’ll be challenging to be a doctor or, you know, Or go into some other, you [00:27:00] know, um, less, uh, competitive one, not less competitive, but more, you have more marketable skills.
Speaker 2 (SI): And then one of the things that college teach you is, and it’s, it’s good for employers as well to know you’ve gone through college. It’s like you have to treat college kind of as a job. So if employers see you can go through four years of college, they know you can maintain a job for at least four years.
Speaker 2 (SI): So, you know, um, So part of the experience of college is like, can I be on task? And do something for four years without quitting or something. So I think college helps you like not shape you, not just ever academically and knowledge, but also it helps teach you persistence and perseverance.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): Now, um, in your day to day life in the United States here, um, do you ever find [00:28:00] yourself, um, doing things that you did in Cambodia?
Speaker 1 (Rachel): Do you have any sort of traits that you’ve carried over?
Speaker 2 (SI): Yeah, well, so like I can climb a tree really well because as a kid, I, you know, we had to climb trees to run away from water buffaloes charging at you and all that. Um, and you know, some of the like, I don’t eat charcoals anymore. But, you know, like, um, I’m trying to think, uh, There’s some stuff, like, there’s, uh, food they serve called gruel in Cambodia, and that’s, like, it’s the cheapest, like, you take rice, put a lot of water in it, and you feed people, so.
Speaker 2 (SI): So, surprisingly, I still eat that, but as far as, like, traits, um, I think maybe appreciation. Like, sometimes, you know, in Cambodia, I didn’t, all I had was, uh, shorts, no shirt or anything when I was a kid. So, when it rains, it gets cold, you’re, like, cuddling and trying to start a fire [00:29:00] and all that. So, here, when it gets cold and stuff and I can put on layers of jacket and clothing, you’re much more appreciative.
Speaker 2 (SI): Like, I still remember, like, oh, I was so cold and I had, you know, no clothes to put on, and it’s freezing and it’s raining, and those are the miseries, like, most people don’t understand. Like, you can understand it for a day or something, but to go, like, weeks and months like that, people don’t seem to grasp that kind of misery.
Speaker 2 (SI): Not suffering, but misery. So those are the things, like, you look back and you’re like, hey, I really appreciate, you know, having clothes to put on, having Food to eat when I’m hungry. So,
Speaker 1 (Rachel): so was the winter the harshest season to have to live through or was it more the hot in the dead of summer?
Speaker 2 (SI): So there’s really no winter per se.
Speaker 2 (SI): It’s more of like this. I guess there’s something called a monsoon season where it’s like raining all the time. So that’s when it gets colder. But, um, no, the, the heat you can tolerate. I mean, the worst part about [00:30:00] the heat is, so of course we don’t have shoes or anything. So when it’s like, Really, really hot and you’re walking on dirt road where dirt is like walking on sand and it really burns your feet.
Speaker 2 (SI): So normally, in those situations, we’ll find, you know, when, when water buffalo, you know, I guess have a bowel movement, you, you coat your feet in manure so you can walk on, uh, walk on gravel and hot, you know, dirt roads and things like that. So, I’m not sure what, what was that? I forgot what your question was.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): Well, um, thank you so much for sharing your story with me and allowing me to ask you questions, um, about your past and your present here in Virginia. Um, is there anything else that you would like to add before we conclude just about, um, your story or your character as a person?
Speaker 2 (SI): Uh, no, I think, um, well, I think the main thing is so, I [00:31:00] know there’s a lot of, um, And I’m not going to get into the politics of it all.
Speaker 2 (SI): There’s a lot of, you know, both side, one side going, Oh, immigration is this, you know, is it good to allow people to come in? Is all that. All I can say is like, there are two ways to look at it. One is. The people who come here, who braves like getting robbed by bandits, getting killed and all that. Those are the people who are going to come and I think we should welcome those people simply because they’re not going to endure all this hardship.
Speaker 2 (SI): Like people get onto little rafts and try to come to the United States, risking life and limb and things like that. But, uh, like those people, you know, they’re going to come and they’re going to do everything they can to make this happen. you know, a better life for themselves. They’re not going to come and be a liability for the system.
Speaker 2 (SI): Um, but then at the same time, like, are you allowing like free [00:32:00] access where people are not really going through all these difficulties to try to get here? So, so it’s a tough, yeah, it’s a tough thing to navigate. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): Well, thank you again. I do really appreciate your time and. You being so open and candid about your experience immigrating here from Cambodia and all the challenges you face.
Speaker 1 (Rachel): That concludes our interview today. Thank you so much again. I do really appreciate your time.
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