Yarning: A Vietnamese/Australian/Indigenous way to speak/share/belong

This is a reflection on how a migrant organisation that I belong to has adopted Indigenous yarning to tell truths, share experiences and heal wounds. The Vietnamese Australian Forum (VAF) was established in 2021 by two south-western Sydney-based lawyers Tu Le and Than Nguyen.1 They sought to form a national body to advance community leadership and identity made up of mostly 1.5- and second-generation Vietnamese migrants-that is, the children of the first-generation refugees. VAF holds informal monthly meetings to organise online and in-person events about culture, politics and other issues of interest to its members who include artists, councillors, community organisers and lawyers. I joined VAF in late 2021, seeking to make a greater contribution to public life and to connect with other Vietnamese Australians. Given my experience as a lecturer and radio presenter, I became the primary forum facilitator.