My name is “Alexis” Oanh Le, I was born and raised in Dalton, GA. I am Vietnamese-American and a first generation university graduate from The University of Southern Mississippi. I have my bachelor’s degree in legal studies and minor in Spanish. I consider myself to be trilingual, but I could always practice my Spanish some more. I knew how to speak Vietnamese growing up, but like many American born individuals, I lost the language as I got older. I re-taught myself Vietnamese through Vietnamese karaoke-ing, speaking the mother-tongue with my family and immersing myself with the Vietnamese culture. My family and I have traveled back to Vietnam almost every year, so this has helped me appreciate my roots even more. Tại vì Oanh không muốn mất gốc cua minh. There is an enormous Vietnamese community in Mississippi. I created the “Người Việt ở Mississippi” group on Facebook that allows Vietnamese-Mississippians to connect with each other. Whether the connection is in regards to law, healthcare, business, news, or any factual information that can help the Vietnamese community. Understanding this demographic, I committed myself to advocate for Asian-Americans and specifically the Vietnamese community during my undergraduate years. I was heavily involved in the Vietnamese Student Association, where I held multiple positions, represented my university on different panels on behalf of VSA, and participated in hosting cultural events. After graduating, I served as a paralegal in Mississippi for Judge Willie Allen of Tupelo, MS. After working with Judge Allen, I moved back to Georgia where I became an Executive Assistant to Attorney Jenny Nguyen and Judge Ethan Pham of Nguyen & Pham, LLC in Norcross, GA. I am excited to be working with PIVOT and CPACS to help break barriers that are considered “setbacks” for our community. We as Asian-Americans influence the American culture, however our voices are not heard. I hope to help guide our community in the right direction by assisting in any way I can and providing the materials for our community to do so.

I am grateful for the opportunities I have been given and I hope to pursue my legal career further in order to continue being a resource to Asian-Americans and Vietnamese-Americans after my fellowship with PIVOT.

Angelina (Thuy Hang) Tran is passionate about convening politics, law, and education to further human rights and sustainability. As a first generation Vietnamese American, Angelina joined PIVOT to amplify the concerns and hopes of her diverse community members through political engagement. Angelina is excited to learn various ways to empower, equip, and engage the civic capacity of Vietnamese-Americans, particularly in her home state of Georgia.