A group of Vietnamese Americans celebrated the president-elect’s victory as a win for their anti-communist efforts.
PALM BEACH, Fla.—A group of Vietnamese Americans who fled communism lauded President-elect Donald Trump’s Election Day victory as a win for their pro-America, anti-communist efforts.
“I feel safe. I feel happy. … It’s my dream, and it’s fulfilled, after four years of working for this,” said Lapson Luu, founder of Vietnamese Americans for America First, which held a Victory Night party at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort on Nov. 6.
Luu granted The Epoch Times exclusive access to the celebration, which about 150 people attended a day after Trump’s landslide victory over Vice President Kamala Harris.
Luu’s group, known as VAFAF, has grown to 500 members and gained attention from many, including Trump. Not only do ladies from the group show up en masse in eye-catching red gowns, but also, the group raised money and used social media and in-person networks to boost Trump’s campaign. In addition, the group has repeatedly gathered at Trump properties.
More than 80,500 people subscribe to VAFAF’s YouTube channel. The group’s mission: is to support Trump and educate others about his “America First” policies, which are based on the principle that the United States keeps its own interests paramount.
The former president has met with Luu about a half-dozen times, she said, emphasizing how much respect he has shown her. Luu, who is petite at 4 feet, 11 inches, said the 6-foot-3 president-elect leans downward so he can speak with her at eye level.
“He wants to know how his policy helped you,” she said.
Luu rejects mainstream media characterizations of Trump as “racist.”
“I’m a minority. If he’s a racist, he won’t talk to me. But every time he sees me, every time he sees me and my two other friends, he always says, ‘These are the good people, the Vietnamese,’” she said.
The VAFAF website features a customized video of Trump thanking the group for its “tireless” work last year. In the video, Trump said the Vietnamese community has strongly supported his candidacy from the start of his foray into politics in 2015. “You have always stood by me and I will always stand by you,” Trump said, reiterating his stance against Marxists and communists. “Thank you for everything you’ve done.”
By Janice Hisle