April 30th 2025 marks the 50th year of the end of the Wars in Southeast Asia. As the descendants of refugees displaced from the Wars in Vietnam, Laos & Cambodia, we remember the cultural practices that sustained our families and community who were forced to resettle in the U.S. As a culture whose cuisine is significantly painted, seasoned with and accentuated with fish sauce, we reflect on the struggle our displaced community experienced while yearning for flavors of home that did not exist in the U.S. until recent years due to the lack of trade agreements with the majority of Southeast Asia.

As our families and elders worked to rebuild their lives, our community sustained the practice of recreating our cultural foods substituted with products from Hong Kong, Thailand and the Philippines. One of the most recognizable brands being: Viet Huong?s Three Crabs that uses fermentation processes in Thailand and blending processes in Hong Kong. One of the more accurate representations of our beloved seasoning from our ancestral land, many Southeast Refugees and descendants can clearly picture Three Crabs adorning the counters and cabinets of the homes we grew up in.

ABOUT THE DESIGN

Inspired by Three Crabs, we pay homage to our families who preserved our ancestral cuisine while rebuilding our lives thousands of miles from our homelands. We remember the symbols of our resilience during our mass resettlement beginning 1975.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Lani Nguyen (she/they) is a queer Vietnamese child of refugees based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.