They stood huddled in the cold, holding candles, declaring themselves a beacon against the darkness.
They were white, black and Asian, men, women and children. They came from many backgrounds, putting a face to the melting pot image of America.
Increasingly, this is the face of Upper Darby, as diverse a municipality as can be seen in Delaware County.
They braved the sting of one of the first really cold nights to pay tribute to Hoa Pham and his family, and to let the person responsible for his death know that they are not going away.
The image could not be more clear. They drew a line in the sand on Copley Road in Upper Darby last night.
It has now been almost a week since Pham and his wife were brutally tortured and beaten inside their home by an intruder who was seeking money.
Pham did not survive the attack. Even in his last moments, his concern was for his wife, encouraging her to run to flee the “house of horrors.” She made it next door and alerted authorities.
It was left to Vietnam veteran Dave McCracken to add the final irony of the ordeal that snuffed out Pham’s life.
McCracken noted that Pham was a member of the South Vietnam army who fought alongside U.S. soldiers. After the fall of Saigon, he was taken captive and held as a POW in North Vietnam.
“We left him over there,” McCracken said last night as he joined the vigil outside the Pham residence. “He was a patriot and we lost him over there. I just wanted to come and honor him because he was a patriot. Twice he got the bad end of the stick.”
Hoa Pham survived the brutality of the war in Vietnam. He survived years as a POW. He could not, however, survive the mean streets of Upper Darby.
Forty years ago, this country was ripped apart by the conflict in Vietnam. Today we are being ripped apart from within, by violence that makes us unsafe even inside our homes.
Maybe Pham’s death can be the beginning of changing that process.
They gathered, from all neighborhoods and all nationalities, last night in Upper Darby to say enough is enough.
I think Hoa Pham would agree.
They were white, black and Asian, men, women and children. They came from many backgrounds, putting a face to the melting pot image of America.
Increasingly, this is the face of Upper Darby, as diverse a municipality as can be seen in Delaware County.
They braved the sting of one of the first really cold nights to pay tribute to Hoa Pham and his family, and to let the person responsible for his death know that they are not going away.
The image could not be more clear. They drew a line in the sand on Copley Road in Upper Darby last night.
It has now been almost a week since Pham and his wife were brutally tortured and beaten inside their home by an intruder who was seeking money.
Pham did not survive the attack. Even in his last moments, his concern was for his wife, encouraging her to run to flee the “house of horrors.” She made it next door and alerted authorities.
It was left to Vietnam veteran Dave McCracken to add the final irony of the ordeal that snuffed out Pham’s life.
McCracken noted that Pham was a member of the South Vietnam army who fought alongside U.S. soldiers. After the fall of Saigon, he was taken captive and held as a POW in North Vietnam.
“We left him over there,” McCracken said last night as he joined the vigil outside the Pham residence. “He was a patriot and we lost him over there. I just wanted to come and honor him because he was a patriot. Twice he got the bad end of the stick.”
Hoa Pham survived the brutality of the war in Vietnam. He survived years as a POW. He could not, however, survive the mean streets of Upper Darby.
Forty years ago, this country was ripped apart by the conflict in Vietnam. Today we are being ripped apart from within, by violence that makes us unsafe even inside our homes.
Maybe Pham’s death can be the beginning of changing that process.
They gathered, from all neighborhoods and all nationalities, last night in Upper Darby to say enough is enough.
I think Hoa Pham would agree.
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