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Kim Phuc Phan Thai: "Napalm Girl" at 46

by Jordan Yerman | September 10, 2009 at 09:49 am

2146 views | 39 Recommendations | 5 comments

Kim Phuc Phan Thai, known as "the napalm girl", was the subject of AP photographer Nick Ut's Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph of a young, terrified girl suffering from napalm burns. That photo is one of the most enduring images from the Vietnam War, though it's easy to forget that that little girl's life did not end there. The girl in the iconic Vietnam War photo ended up at Barsky Hospital in Saigon, where she was treated for her burns, and she survived.

Kim Phuc went on to university, and was used as an anti-war symbol by the Vietnamese government before emigrating to Cuba to continue her studies. Kim Phuc and her new husband, whom she met in Cuba, got political asylum in Canada, and now live in Ontario.

Kim Phuc Phan Thai is now a UN Goodwill Ambassador and motivational speaker for burn victims and burn-unit healthcare providers.

"I should be dead," Phuc said. "I got burned so deep I had to do skin grafts -- mostly from under my leg -- from the 35 percent of my skin that was OK. And from the beginning to the end, including physical therapy, I was in the burn unit in Saigon for about 14 months. And I had 17 operations. But I was spared," she added.

"So now I think, 'I cannot change something that happened to me already. But I can change the meaning."

Nick Ut’s 1972 picture of a nine-year-old girl fleeing her village after a napalm attack represents, for many, not just a snapshot of the Vietnam War but the moral complexity of the war itself.

Kim Phuc Phan Thai was an unwilling symbol of the horrors of war, much like Joshua Bernhard in Julie Jacobson's hotly-debated photo series.

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slimmey

at 10:10 on September 10th, 2009

Fantastic! As a fellow Vietnamese, stories like this makes me proud. Such stories are rare. There´s a lot of stories about known pictures, everything from this, to the officer that gets shot and the man in front of the tanks on Tianmen Square. Hope more of these stories could come forth.

jazzyzazzy

at 14:27 on September 10th, 2009

A woman with a lot of courage,no doubt.

(Michael Bruchas aka_ funsky1 (not verified)

at 15:07 on September 10th, 2009

Nick Ut is still shooting for the AP in California.I noticed in the Chicago Tribune yesterday - a shot of an L.A. fire truck tipping into a sink hole.Shot by Nick for the AP.Have always wanted to meet him in person.BTW - you news photography fans - check out www.digitaljournalist.org whichis edited and published by DC White House photog - Dirk Halstead - who is now teaching in TX and still shooting.

John Mitten (not verified)

at 16:21 on September 10th, 2009

Hi Kim Phuc Phan Thai,I am 57 and remember that magazine cover with you running. I just saw your AOL story. I just wanted to say hello and that I'm glad you're still here. I am a Christian and may God bless you and help you.John MittenManchester, NH

Paschen

at 16:29 on September 10th, 2009

She helped raise awareness with in her life time and still does and the Photos contributed to this greatly.

However, no much has changed since then and many end up suffering as she did for no reason other then Imperialistic ambitions and inhumane weapons and wars fought on the back of the Civilian populations.

It use to be mustard Gas, then Napalm, and now Uranium tipped anti tank shells and Phosphorus being used again as well.

Will we ever learn that War can not be a solution? Or the the prize tag for those wars is way to high and can not be justified no matter the twisted reasoning we may try to come up with to legitimise our casualties.