Duy Tran’s uncle came to America on a boat with other political refugees from Vietnam during the U.S. war. It was at sea for 52 days. Their only food was raw fish. Half of them died from starvation. They came seeking freedom and better lives for themselves and their families. Most of Tran’s family and friends experienced similarly dangerous journeys on their path to America and Tran says it gave him a greater appreciation of the goals Vietnamese immigrants were pursuing.

In pursuit of his own goal, in 2010, Tran was nearing graduation with a degree in labor studies at the National Labor College (NLC) and in need of a research topic to complete his requirements. All degree-seeking students at the college—established in 1969 by the AFL-CIO to educate and train union members—are required to complete a senior project where they research a topic on how labor can be a force for social change. Students are encouraged to choose a project that can be implemented in the real world and lead to actual change.

Tran, a wire assembler at the Boeing Co., in Everett, Wash., and a steward of the Machinists (IAM) District Lodge 751, knew the benefits of being represented by a union. But that wasn’t always the case. When he joined in 1997, he didn’t know much about unions and their value to working people.

Read the rest of Found in Translation on the AFL-CIO's @Work site.