NEWSLETTER SENT: 2020-06-14
Hey,
As some of you may know, my great-grandfather (Phan Boi Chau) was Vietnam’s leading anti-colonial revolutionary at the turn of the 20th century.
In addition to an epic ability to grow facial hair, he:
- established Vietnam’s ties with post-Meiji Japan
- worked closely with Sun Yat-sen (the provisional first president of the Republic of China)
- attempted to overthrow French colonial rule but was ultimately sold out to the French by Ho Chi Minh because the two became ideological rivals (Ho, what an asshole!)
All of this was top of mind when I watched Spike Lee’s new Netflix movie Da 5 Bloods over the weekend. The film — which looks at the Vietnam War through African-American eyes — includes some prominent French characters, including acting legend Jean Reno.
Based on the movie’s release, I pumped out two pieces of related content:
- Da 5 Bloods Shows Why The Vietnam War Matters (Again)
- A Tweetstorm on the history of the legendary Ho Chi Minh City nightclub Apocalypse Now. I know a lot of you have been there, so enjoy this trip down memory lane 😂..
The French ultimately charged Phan Boi Chau with treason and planned to execute him; however, after realizing they might create a martyr, they backtracked and forced him into house arrest in Hue for the final 15 years of his life.
After all that, I’m sure my great-grandfather is ecstatic that his progeny are using their revolutionary genes to make Twitter threads, but here we are hahaha.
Anyways, thanks for reading and stay safe out there.
Trung