Ceremony in Oklahoma City mourns fall of Saigon

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ Hundreds of Vietnamese Americans and their guests gathered at Military Park in Oklahoma City to mourn the fall of Saigon 30 years ago. <br/><br/>But there was a hopeful note to the

Sunday, May 1st 2005, 5:40 pm

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ Hundreds of Vietnamese Americans and their guests gathered at Military Park in Oklahoma City to mourn the fall of Saigon 30 years ago.

But there was a hopeful note to the Day of Mourning ceremony Saturday, as community leaders noted the advance of freedom around the world and improvements in civil rights in their homeland.

Vinh Nguyen -- chairman of the Vietnamese-American Community of Oklahoma City -- says she hopes the liberation of Vietnam.

The flag of the defeated Republic of South Vietnam -- a yellow background and three red stripes -- was guest of honor at this year's ceremony. A resolution passed recently by the Oklahoma Legislature names it the official flag of the Vietnamese community in Oklahoma.