Hannah Tran-Trinh
Hannah Tran-Trinh
Hannah Tran-Trinh is a senior at UMass Amherst. She is from Boston, Massachusetts.
Early Life
At the news desk
Hannah was born in Boston to a Vietnamese immigrant family. She spoke Vietnamese in her home and grew up in a diverse community. [undefined] Hannah attended the Boston Latin School where she was a part of the Gospel Choir, Fashion Talent Club, Concert String Orchestra, and Asian Students in Action. She graduated high school in 2013. [1] Hannah has worked as a hostess at several restaurants in the Boston area including Vlora, Tico, and Parla. She is currently a server at The Hanger in Amherst. [1]
College and Career
Hannah went on to become a student at UMass Amherst where she is a double major in journalism and communications. She has completed several media internships including being a production assistant for the Phantom Gourmet television program and a Public Relations Assistant for WHDH-TV. Hannah is currently a staff writer for the Massachusetts Daily Collegian and hosts her own foodie blog, Happy Hungry Hannah. [undefined]
Viral Article About Her Life Experience
On April 26th, Hannah published an article in the Amherst Wire titled "What it’s like having all white friends at UMass." In it, she compares her life experience growing up in the diverse community of Boston to UMass Amherst which is populated with only 25% people of color. Hannah talks about how isolating it can be being a person of color and having white friends that cannot share her life experience. To conclude the article, Hannah wrote:
Most importantly, I discovered the desperate need for diversity across campus, and how important it is that I do my own part of starting working on it.
Having all white friends at UMass is like being the only person of color at an all white party.
It’s like dancing alone to your own soundtrack every day for four years.
It’s like bottling up your feelings in fear of offending people close to you, or holding back in fear of them offending you.
It’s like painting your nails at home when your friends are getting acrylic French mani-pedis from old Vietnamese women for $50.
It’s like dumping a ton of hot sauce on your rice while they’re dipping their fries in ketchup.
Having all white friends at UMass is like hiding your brown skin behind a white mask while your pale friends are out getting spray tans.
Since it was published, the article has since gone viral of Facebook and has been shared hundreds of times.