Born: 1949 (Ky La village, Hoa Quy, Da Nang, Vietnam)
Biography:
Le Ly Hayslip (born Phùng Th L Lý; December 19, 1949) is a Vietnamese-American writer, memoirist, and humanitarian. She has dedicated her life to rebuilding cultural bridges between Vietnam and America following the Vietnam War.
Hayslip was born in Ky La village in Hoa Quy, now a district of Da Nang in central Vietnam. She grew up as the sixth and youngest child of farmers. When she was 12 years old, American helicopters landed in her village, marking the beginning of the Vietnam War. At the age of 14, she underwent torture in a South Vietnamese government prison due to her revolutionary sympathies.
After her release, Hayslip fled to Saigon, where she and her mother found work as housekeepers for a wealthy Vietnamese family. However, her employment ended abruptly when she had an affair with her employer and became pregnant. Hayslip and her mother were forced to flee to Da Nang, where she struggled to support her mother and her infant son.
In 1969, Hayslip met and married an American civilian contractor named Ed Munro, who was more than twice her age. She moved to San Diego, California, to join him. Tragically, Munro passed away from emphysema in 1973, leaving Hayslip a widow at the young age of 24.
Hayslip’s second marriage to Dennis Hayslip was marked by unhappiness. Dennis struggled with alcoholism, depression, and anger issues. Despite the difficulties, she had her third child, Alan, with him on her 26th birthday. The couple eventually filed for divorce in 1982 after Dennis committed domestic violence. Shortly after the divorce, Dennis was found dead in a van outside a school building. However, Hayslip inherited some money from his trust fund and had her mortgage paid off with his insurance.
Hayslip is renowned for her memoirs, which provide powerful insights into her life experiences. Her first book, When Heaven and Earth Changed Places: A Vietnamese Woman’s Journey from War to Peace (Doubleday, 1989), recounts her peaceful childhood and war-torn adolescence. The memoir alternates between Hayslip’s narration of her life in Vietnam as a child and her first return to Vietnam and her family in 1986. This nonlinear structure highlights the circular nature of her journey, both physical and emotional.
In her second memoir, Child of War, Woman of Peace, Hayslip continues her personal narrative, exploring her journey towards finding inner peace and her role as a peacemaker.
Throughout her life, Hayslip has worked tirelessly to heal the wounds of the Vietnam War and foster understanding between Vietnam and America. Through her foundations, she has dedicated herself to rebuilding cultural bridges and promoting peace.