Channapha Khamvongsa

Channapha Khamvongsa is a Lao-American activist and founder of Legacies of War, a non-profit aiming to spread awareness of the enduring impact of the Vietnam War in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic. Khamvongsa’s childhood was surrounded by conflict. She was born in Laos near the end of the country’s civil war, which overlapped with the Vietnam War. At the age of six, her family was able to escape the war-torn region to start life all over again in the United States. While attending college in the United States, Channapha Khamvongsa began researching U.S. involvement in the Laotian Civil War, known as the Secret War within the CIA. Inspired by drawings and stories of the Laotian people who experienced the U.S. bombings, Khamvongsa began Legacies of War in 2004. Channapha envisioned the non-profit as a way to educate people and direct resources toward the clearance of undetonated explosives and victim assistance.

Throughout the organization’s existence, Channapha Khamvongsa has grown Legacies of War with diplomacy rather than resentment. She has enlisted the help of former ambassadors, lobbying groups, and even veterans who participated in the bombings to contribute to the healing process. President Obama acknowledged Khamvongsa’s work while announcing a massive increase in US spending on explosives clearance in Laos.