Huong Le was born in Ninh Binh province in North Vietnam. In 1954, he and his family migrated to South Vietnam to flee the communist camps. After being imprisoned in the war as a member of the South Vietnam army until 1981, he and his family immigrated to the United States and settled in Portland, Oregon, in 1991, where he has lived ever since.
In this interview, Le begins by talking about the circumstances that brought him to the United States and how he ended up living in Portland specifically. He shares about the organizations that assisted him and his family, such as IRCO and USCC. Le then talks about the difficulties of the language barrier, finding work in Portland doing manual labor, and some societal differences between the United States and Vietnam. Le also discusses the Vietnamese community and the importance of using the vote to gain more rights and recognition in this country. At the end of the interview, Le talks about how the community has changed over the years and gives advice to the Vietnamese generations living in America to be enthusiastic and sincere in their studies and in their work.