Southeast Asia -I
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SOUTHEAST ASIA (CHAPTER 10: pages 339-351) 1 Vietnamese in Houston 2 Form of the SE countries 3 Southeast Asia 4 Oceania 5 Island countries inundated by rising sea levels E. J. PALKA SOUTHEAST ASIA Viet Nam Airlines does NOT fly nonstop to Houston, but connections are easily available. Viet Nam Air Hanoi domestic routes. Ho Chi Minh City (named after the communist leader) is the former Saigon now that the country is united under a single communist government. Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Vietnamese were relocated to the Houston area en masse after the Vietnamese War as refugees. Others have redistributed themselves along the gulf coast because of a favorable climate and fishing industries typical in the homeland. There are extensive economic and social ties between Viet Nam and Houston on business and personal levels: restaurants, fabric, and interior design stores located in Midtown across from HCC Admin, 3100 Main. Vietnamese fashion is well known because of silk, embroidery, and exotic fabrics made in the native country. Many local Vietnamese restaurants (Kim Son) have created fusion foods that merge Hispanic and Asian cultures. Popular restaurant Mai’s on Milam is recently re-opened after a devastating fire. Street signs in Midtown carry both English and Vietnamese names. Custom Fortune Cookie Company 6204 Evergreen, Houston, TX 77081 Phone: (713) 988-2542 Vietnamese War Memorial SW Houston Other ethnic neighborhoods carry signs in the language of the people: Indian, Korean, Chinese, Japanese. ( Michael Stravato / For The Times ) GROWING INFLUENCE: A sculpture of Vietnamese refugees stands in a strip mall in Houston’s Chinatown area. See the related news clipping on Viet migration from California. Vietnamese are both Buddhist and Christian and have their own radio stations. Purpose of single member districts is to elect minority representatives based upon the ethnic composition of the area as they are configured through redistricting based upon Census tabulations. Neighborhood, single member districts have historically been the only method that minorities can be elected to government. 2010 Ethnicity is tabulated on the Census form as a separate sub- category of race. Thus, Hispanics and middle eastern Arabs typically remain classified as White. Asians are tabulated based upon country of origin. Redistricting after 2010 will balance the population and ethnicity between districts to improve minority representation. In 2004, Hubert Vo (Houston) became the 1st Vietnamese State Representative to the Texas Legislature. Vo defeated the most powerful (white male) Republican in the House who had unlimited campaign financial resources. He won by a mere 33 votes, out of 40,000+ ballots cast. Thus, recounts were lengthy, expensive, and outrage by Republicans enormous. A rematch was planned 2 yrs later, and Vo won again by a respectable margin. Single member districts and massive demographic change are how such dramatic political turnovers occur. However, they require massive grassroots efforts to educate the voters, communicate the issues, and the qualifications of the Candidate. 2012 Harris Co. House Districts Find your State Rep http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/find-your-representative/ West Harris Co. is extremely ethnically diverse with a heavy concentration of Vietnamese and other Asians. Single Member Districts Honors the concept of 1 man, 1 vote or representation of the people (constituents) to the governmental body of a neighborhood-based, geographic district or jurisdiction. Employs the concept of Redistricting every 10 years to re-configure jurisdictional boundaries from which officials are elected by the voters as the population moves and relocates itself. Redistricting requires accurate population data from the Census, whose mission is specifically FOR redistricting) Because Census is the authoritative data source, it’s timing is always assumed to be on a decennial (10-year) basis. Separate districts for all elected officials are re- districted decennially with completely separate and unique boundaries. Elected jurisdictions are the original method for the country to achieve a DEMOCRACY. Government derives its authority from the people, therefore known as a DEMOCRACY. From the Greek: (dêmos) "people" and κράτος (krátos) "power“. DEMOCRACY means : “of the people , by the people, for the people.” Democracy is achieved as a reality through the concept of “1 man; 1 vote” by electing representatives on behalf of the people to serve on governmental / legislative bodies Amendment 10 of the US Constitution grants all other powers to the States (via their State Constitutions and Legislatures) to create the hierarchy of state and local governments, including counties, cities, and misc. special districts (utilities, transportation, hospitals, ports, etc.) These Representatives and governing Board members are usually elected from single member districts or specific geographic neighborhoods that define a “community of interest”. The demographic character of the area should be reflected by the chosen Representative. These single member districts promote the election of minorities, when they otherwise could not win in a larger geographic context because they are minorities by definition. Single member districts result in different boundaries that define local, state, and federal districts (that usually overlap) for each elected office: federal Congress: House of Representatives; (Senate is at- large/statewide, 2 from each state) state State Representative & State Senate City Council; County Commissioner School Boards (HISD; HCC) local Justice of the Peace precincts; other elected local government offices. 2010 Census Voter Registration Forms and Ballots are in 4 Languages in Harris County Vietnamese Chinese Spanish English Why Vietnamese ? Vietnamese were relocated to the Houston area en masse after the Vietnam War as political refugees to escape the Communists. Others have redistributed themselves along the gulf coast because of a favorable climate and fishing industries typical in the homeland. As a result of interracial marriages, we have “fusion cuisine” or a mixture of Hispanic and Asian foods. Other Houston voting instructions are also in Vietnamese Census 2010: Chinese language now offered in Harris County voting booths by khou.com staff October 14, 2011 at HOUSTON – Chinese will now be one of the languages offered in Harris County voting booths. County officials say the Chinese population has grown by 24 percent since the year 2000. Voting materials are also provided in Vietnamese and Spanish. New data from the Census Bureau shows Harris County needs to add the Chinese language to its voting and election materials. Harris County's overall Asian population increased by 43 percent between 2000 and 2010. More than half of the growth was in the Chinese community. 2010 Census Houston is THE most ethnically diverse city in the US, so English is NOT a requirement to vote in Texas. Houston has more of each race/ ethnicity than any other major city. First Vietnamese-American elected to Congress. Republican Anh „Joseph‟ Cao wins 2008 seat in New Orleans, Louisiana. Mon., Dec . 8, 2008 NEW ORLEANS - The first Vietnamese-American elected to Congress took advantage of dissatisfaction with a longtime incumbent dogged by corruption allegations and reflects the changing nature of New Orleans politics since Hurricane Katrina. Republican immigration attorney Anh "Joseph" Cao defeated Democratic U.S. William Jefferson on Saturday in an election postponed for a month by Hurricane Gustav. The victory for a 41- year-old child of Vietnam War refugees was greeted with amazement. ~~~~~~~~~~~~ In 2006, a Republican governor, Indian- American Bobby Jindal, was elected after no–confidence was perceived in leadership of Gov. Blanco during Hurricane Katrina Despite communism, the government promotes itself around the world with a propaganda message. Opposition to the communist government is strong. The Houston Vietnamese community resents opening of a US Consular Office because of communism. (see handouts) Other countries who readily admit immigrants denounce the communist government in Vietnam. SOUTHEAST ASIA PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY Major cities SOUTHEAST ASIA: Major Cities ETHNIC PATTERNS Settlement patterns British Thailand French Spanish THE British COLONIAL IMPRINT: Country of Netherlands Origin POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY A SYSTEMATIC FIELD OF GEOGRAPHY THAT FOCUSES ON THE SPATIAL EXPRESSIONS OF POLITICAL BEHAVIOR FRIEDRICH RATZEL (1844 - 1904) a German geographer and ethnographer, notable for coining the term Lebensraum ("living space") and geopolitics. Geopolitics is the study that analyzes geography, history and social science with reference to spatial politics and patterns at various scales (ranging from the level of the state to international). It examines the political, economic, and strategic significance of geography, where geography is defined in terms of the location, size, function, and relationships of places and resources. BOUNDARIES STATE TERRITORIAL MORPHOLOGY THE IMPACT OF SHAPE? REGIONS OF THE REALM MAINLAND SOUTHEAST ASIA VIETNAM (PREVIOUSLY NORTH & SOUTH VIETNAM) CAMBODIA (PREVIOUSLY FRENCH INDO- CHINA) LAOS (PREVIOUSLY FRENCH INDO-CHINA) THAILAND MYANMAR (PREVIOUSLY BURMA) MAINLAND REGION 5 STATES: VIETNAM, LAOS, CAMBODIA, THAILAND, MYANMAR BUDDHISM DOMINATES THE CULTURAL LANDSCAPE A MULTICULTURAL AND MULTIETHNIC REGION ONE OF THE LEAST URBANIZED REALMS IN THE WORLD SOME COUNTRIES HAVE MORE THAN ONE CORE AREA