50 years after fall of Saigon, Asian American veterans share emotional Vietnam War tales

DURING HIS ADOLESCENCE, William Fong’s entire world was contained in San Francisco. But in 1967, over a decade into the Vietnam War, he was drafted.

At age 20, he left his home in the city’s Chinatown neighborhood for basic training, and then found himself in Asia for the first time. Anticipating he would be surrounded by American soldiers who were mostly white, Fong grew anxious about being perceived as an enemy combatant.