Cuong Tieu 91019-111
FCI HERLONG
Federal Correctional Institute
P.O. Box 800
Herlong, CA 96113
My name is Cuong Tieu. My family and friends call me Steve. I am 53 years old and like most of the incarcerated population, I came from a bad place with very bad conditions at a very young, never knowing or celebrating a birthday or Christmas, never being told I was loved by one or both parents; I believed not because they don’t, but because my parents were separated and my father was often at work so I never got to see him. Also, the difficulty of being a refugee in a strange land as I didn’t speak the language.
At the age of six, my family tried to flee the communist rule in Vietnam, after the fall of Sai Gon to the NVA. We were captured and placed in a northern Vietnamese concentration camp. Luckily after a month or so, other family members were able to “purchase” our release. It would be four more years before we were able to successfully flee.
We ended up on a small island, one square kilometer, in an area situated off the coast of Terengganu, Malaysia in the South China sea called Bidong Island (more at wikipedia.org/wiki/Bidong_island). To many of the refugees it came to be known as “Hell Isle”, due to the inhumane conditions we were forced to endure.
In 1981, we were granted refugee status and arrived at San Francisco International Airport. What followed next is the trying to fit in – fighting, expulsions from school and the drive to provide for my loved ones in the only way I felt was available to me, which led me to juvie, CA State Prison and eventually Federal Prison.
Even through these trials and tribulations, I was able to find joy as a father, through experiences shared with my children like fishing, camping and playing our favorite video game (COD). By witnessing my children’s happiness, I glimpsed what my own childhood may have been like if I had experienced similar interactions with my own father.
While knowing where I came from is important, it is not where I am today, nor who I have become. As I reflect on my life this past decade, I realize I was sick and damaged (mind, body and soul) from the hardship I had to experience and endure throughout my life, as far back as I can remember. I was able to find healing of that sickness through art. Through my art I am able to demonstrate my personal journey and self-growth. I donate my art in appreciation of the many who have supported me and in the hope that it demonstrates the wellspring of positive energy I possess. I hope that through this sharing, my family, friends and the world may find the solace and peace I have.
My life and choices available to me have been difficult. This is not to say that I am in any way dismissive or irresponsible, as I am very aware of my actions and am committed to rectifying them. Where judgement is concerned, I ask that my actions, both past and present, be viewed within the content of the choices available.
