In the days when the tricolor flew over Indo-China, there was a distinct advantage in being a metisthe offspring of a foreigner and a Vietnamese. France generously granted citizenship to any Vietnamese with even a drop of French blood. Slant-eyed Eurasians, born of French soldiers or colons, learned in school that "our ancestors were the Gallic people." Eurasian men learned to drink cognac and vin rouge, the oftimes beautiful Eurasian women to wear Chanel perfume and Paris gowns. Vietnamese of mixed blood got the best jobs, were always considered a few steps above their fellow countrymen.
During the Indo-Chinese war,...
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