Known as the "boat people," many Vietnamese sought to escape the tumult, communism, and violence left behind from the Vietnam War. Surrounded on all sides, they were left with one real option—flee via boat on the South China Sea. Some boats were so small that they could only carry a single family. Compounded with leaky and poor conditions, many people were not able to get far. Yet, by 1978, more than 500,000 Vietnamese had attempted to leave their country.

The state of the boat people made international news, sparking the attention of the United Nations. The organization convinced the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and France to allow more Vietnamese refugees into their countries. Soon after, Congress passed the Refugee Act of 1980, permitting Vietnamese refugees direct entrance into the U.S., as long as they had existing family in the country. An estimated 725,000 Vietnamese settled in the U.S. in just two decades.