Supervisor Andrew Do of the First District is calling for a pubic apology from Orange County Democrats for staging – what he says – is an offensive “Black April” event in violation of COVID19 restrictions. Do claims Democrats “erase memory of heroic US and South Vietnamese soldiers who defended Saigon and saved my life.”
It ain’t gonna happen.
The news release, issued by Do’s campaign and not the county, charges the event was held on the wrong date and in violation of COVID19 restrictions.
City of Westminster formally recognized April 23rd – April 30th as “Black April Memorial Week,” and the City of Garden Grove, the Orange County Department of Education, and the California State legislature and others have formally recognized the month of April as “Black April Memorial Month.”
“Democrats should be ashamed for staging an event – on the wrong date— without the City of Westminster’s knowledge and to the exclusion of the Vietnamese-American community,” said Supervisor Andrew Do, Chairman of the Orange County Board of Supervisors. “By staging an event on April 23rd, Democrats erase the memory of the brave American and South Vietnamese freedom fighters, who bravely defended Saigon from April 23rd to April 30.”
“During that crucial week – that Democrats erase— thousands of lives were saved, including mine,” added Do, who fled with his family from Saigon on April 29, 1975.
DPOC Vietnamese Outreach Special Committee Chair Julie Diep issued this statement on Black April: “Black April is a time to grieve the trauma that touches every Vietnamese American. This is a time for all of us to come together in mourning. It is healing to honor our lost loved ones, and to understand our history and our heritage.”
“The Fall of Saigon will never be forgotten. The Democratic Party of Orange County stands with all those who suffered and sacrificed, and all those we lost, over the horrifying events and terror of the Fall of Saigon,” said Rachel Potucek, a spokesperson for the DPOC.
It’s notable that Do did not know that City of Westminster formally recognized April 23rd – April 30th as “Black April Memorial Week,” and the City of Garden Grove, the Orange County Department of Education, and the California State legislature and others have formally recognized the month of April as “Black April Memorial Month.”
In a preview of future Vietnamese-American GOP campaigns to come, Do reminded the press about former DPOC Vice Chair Jeff LeTourneau’s “Ho Chi Minh” screw up last fall. LeTorneau is no longer on the Party’s Central Committee in any way, shape or form.
I’ll give Do props for identifying Democrats who honored Vietnamese-Americans in Little Saigon, so props to:
- Rep. Lou Correa, D-Santa Ana
- Rep. Alan Lowenthal, D-Long Beach
- State Senator Tom Umberg, D-Santa Ana
- State Senator David Min, D-Irvine
- State Senator Josh Newman, D-Fullerton
- Irvine Mayor Farrah Khan
- Garden Grove Councilwoman Diedre Thu-Ha Nguyen
- Garden Grove Council Candidate Julie Diep
- Midway City Sanitary District Director Sergio Contreras
I’ll be sure to say hello to Supervisor Do the next time I see him shopping at my local Target in North Irvine with his family — again.
He looks like he has been celebrating Cinco de Mayo in that picture.
A shame no one cares enough about the corrupt politics in Orange County to actually ascertain Do’s real address.
I see him and his family at Target in North Irvine near Jamboree all the time. Isn’t there a Target store in his district?