This merchandise store reps Little Saigon, with a twist
Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It’s Thursday, June 29. I am Jeong Park, covering Asian American communities for The Times.
After you resist the sweet taste of bánh mì kem sữa, or milk buns, or the beautiful displays of purple orchids, after wading through smells of incense and ginseng, you will arrive at a small corner store on the second floor of the Asian Garden Mall in Westminster.
Here, the neighborhood of Little Saigon is on full display, with a twist.
A picture frame proudly declares Orange County to be “Banh Mi Republic,” with a drawing of the Vietnamese baguette sandwich. A T-shirt has a drawing similar to the logo of Café Du Monde, a French-style coffee brand adopted and beloved by Vietnamese refugees. Atop the drawing: “Cafe đụ má,” đụ má a Vietnamese profanity.
Another T-shirt shouts out “phở 20” — pronounced like 420, the number associated with cannabis — with a bowl of Vietnamese noodle soup and “fresh greens served with every bowl.” A black sweatshirt bears a duck named “Supdawk” — broken English for “what’s up, dog?” — holding a bottle of Hennessy cognac and a street sign of Magnolia Street and Bolsa Avenue, two key streets of Little Saigon.
I first stumbled upon the shop a few weeks ago, at a celebration of the neighborhood’s 35th anniversary in the mall that has long been a cultural hub for the Vietnamese American community.
I’ve seen plenty of merchandise repping Asian American identity and neighborhoods — I own a fair share of Koreatown-related T-shirts and swag — but never a physical store, especially at a place like the Asian Garden Mall, which traditionally attracts older customers.
Chris Tran, a 48-year-old Anaheim resident whose day job involves working on art toys, has run the store for six months. It’s a physical location for his “Fall and Rise” brand, which he launched online two years ago. His Instagram account, littlesaigon.official, boasts more than 50,000 followers.
The store is about “celebrating our stereotypes,” he told me when I saw him at the store Wednesday.
“Why don’t we own it ourselves?” Tran said. “Embrace it as our own.”
Tran came from Vietnam as a refugee when he was a year old in 1976. He was part of the first wave of immigrants who built Little Saigon, a source of pride and a political force.
Like many immigrants, Tran faced prejudice and discrimination growing up as he tried to hide his cultural identity and assimilate. He struggled with defining what it meant to be Asian American — not quite Asian enough, and not quite American enough.
After making his way through the street racing scene, where he was surrounded by people of all cultures and backgrounds and where he learned to embrace diversity, Tran launched the brand as his answer to what it means to be Asian American, a celebration of both identities.
His brand name, “Fall and Rise,” refers to the Fall of Saigon in 1975 but also to the rise of Little Saigon that followed.
He will never forget the fall, of course.
But “let’s all enjoy the fruits of our trauma, to the pain that we endured, and the happiness that we enjoy now,” Tran said, as he showed off a black sweatshirt with a dragon holding oranges.
Ryan Ha, a 25-year-old Fullerton College student and Tran’s nephew, works at the store. He said his job has helped him better understand the identity of Little Saigon as well as his own as a Vietnamese American.
Growing up in Fullerton, Ha only visited Little Saigon occasionally. The neighborhood had felt a bit foreign to him. But his job has given him a way to reconnect with the neighborhood.
“I want to show people you don’t have to feel like you are alienated from all this kind of stuff,” he said. “I am proud this is the culture that I am a part of, and this is uniquely something that I want to feel proud of.”
Ha sees the store as a way to bring younger clients, even those who are not Vietnamese American, to the mall, carrying it into the future and preserving its community role for another generation. That’s what Tran is hoping for himself.
After all, visiting Asian Garden Mall as a kid helped Tran connect to Asian and American cultures alike, buying hip-hop CDs and anime merchandise from gift shops.
“The way they shared with me,” Tran said. “I would like to share with others.”
And now, here’s what’s happening across California:
Note: Some of the sites we link to may limit the number of stories you can access without subscribing.
L.A. STORIES
L.A. streetwear icon Chris “Spanto” Printup dies at 42. His brand Born X Raised launched in 2013 and amassed a cult-like following in the city, with collaborations with the Dodgers and Rams. Los Angeles Times
The pope’s ‘favorite nun’ defends migrants. So why did she agree Texas could bus them to L.A.?
Sister Norma Pimentel is known for helping migrants, yet vetted them for the buses that Texas sent to various cities. She said that parties on both sides of the aisle turned the bus into a political spectacle. Los Angeles Times
A look at homeless Korean Americans. Those who are homeless said they were either unaware of homeless assistance policies or found it difficult to access them due to language barriers. Korea Daily
Amtrak train derails. The train, which was bound for Washington state and carried about 190 people, struck a truck in Moorpark. The truck’s driver was among 15 people transported to area hospitals with injuries. Los Angeles Times
POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT
Anime fans could play a crucial role in the largest hotel workers’ strike in years. Anime Expo, the largest anime convention in North America, is set to kick off this weekend at the same time and spot as the strike. A union has launched anime-style advertisements to convey its message. Will cosplayers cross the picket line? Los Angeles Times
Reparations task force will release its final report today. But one of its members has already pitched an idea: Giving Black residents control over the land occupied by the state’s closing prisons. Los Angeles Times
Downtown San Francisco is struggling. Taiwan to the rescue? Taiwan spent $53 million to purchase a building that will be the new home of its San Francisco location of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office. San Francisco Standard
CRIME, COURTS AND POLICING
He could have saved an innocent friend from prison. He waited three decades to try.
Roberto Socorro said he feared earning a “snitch” label. But after he was deported to Cuba, he finally spoke out. San Francisco Chronicle
Will Antioch police officers face decertification? More than 50 officers across California have been suspended or banished from the profession this year for alleged misconduct. That number could grow as a state commission looks at Antioch police officers who allegedly sent racist text messages. Mercury News
FBI investigates Bitwise Industries. Federal authorities are investigating the Fresno-based technological training, technology services and real estate development company after its financial implosion. Fresno Bee
Support our journalism
HEALTH AND THE ENVIRONMENT
Moving Orange County’s rail line inland. Traveling south of San Clemente on Amtrak and Metrolink has long been a relaxing and scenic experience. But amid crumbling bluffs and relentless beach erosion, officials ponder whether it’s time to abandon portions of the coastal route for good. Los Angeles Times
“I would rather be homeless than go back there.” The AIDS Healthcare Foundation has more than 1,000 low-income housing units across Greater Los Angeles, but tenants are suing the nonprofit. Reporting from Cal State LA’s students and professors found serious inspection violations, frequently reported crime and disenfranchised tenants. Knock LA
More money for San Francisco Bay. Some two dozen projects are getting $52 million in new federal funding to restore wildlife, expand wetlands and reduce the amount of trash and other pollutants going into the bay. Mercury News
CALIFORNIA CULTURE
Telling a different story of the Mission San Gabriel. After a four-alarm fire burned the building in 2020, the new version of the Mission San Gabriel Museum will open on July 1, with a more historically accurate and inclusive picture of the Catholic mission and the Indigenous communities it colonized. Los Angeles Times
Google steps back its involvement in a San Francisco drag show. Two employees demanded Google cancel the event and apologize for promoting “anti-Christian themes.” Google did not say whether the pressure pushed the company to pull back, but a drag queen who performed said it’s “indicative of a huge groundswell of hatred across the country using drag queens and trans people as scapegoats.” San Francisco Chronicle
New sponsor for the US Open of Surfing. Wallex, a digital asset service provider that allows customers to make international payments via a secure electronic platform, will be the new title sponsor of the world’s largest action-sports festival. Orange County Register
Free online games
Get our free daily crossword puzzle, sudoku, word search and arcade games in our new game center at latimes.com/games.
AND FINALLY
Today’s California landmark is from John Sagebiel from Reno: Alabama Hills.
John writes:
The Alabama Hills is an area west of U.S. 395 near Lone Pine. It’s a gorgeous natural area by itself and also close to the highest point in both California and the contiguous 48 states, Mt. Whitney. It’s also home to several natural arches, including the famous Mobius Arch. The area also has an amazing history as a location for Hollywood films, dating back to the 1920’s and all the way up to the present. Everything from Westerns to sci-fi to fantasy films have been made here. Even the main dirt road that transects the area is called “Movie Road.” This is the image of the Old West seen by much of the world through Hollywood movies.
— John Sagebiel
What are California’s essential landmarks? Fill out this form to send us your photos of a special spot in California — natural or human-made. Tell us why it’s interesting and what makes it a symbol of life in the Golden State. Please be sure to include only photos taken directly by you. Your submission could be featured in a future edition of the newsletter.
Please let us know what we can do to make this newsletter more useful to you. Send comments to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
