The Little Guerrilla Fighter - The Life Story Behind the Photo

"The Little Guerrilla" is a vertical black-and-white photograph by journalist Phan Thoan (former reporter).Ha Tinh NewspaperThe photograph depicts a female militia member wearing a pith helmet, holding a rifle in both hands, escorting a much larger American pilot. Both are walking, the pilot handcuffed, his head bowed low.

The photograph resonated widely, serving as a source of encouragement for the soldiers and people of North Vietnam in their resistance against the destructive bombing campaign by the US Air Force. In 1966, the photograph...Little guerrillaIt was displayed in a national photo exhibition. After seeing it, the poet To Huu wrote four lines of poetry:

"The little guerrilla raised his gun high."
The lanky American walked with his head bowed.
So that's it! Being bolder is better than having a big belly.
"Heroes don't have to be men!"

The photograph "Little Guerrilla" by journalist Phan Thoan.

The two people in the photo are female guerrilla fighter Nguyen Thi Kim Lai (then 17 years old, residing in Phu Phong commune, Huong Khe district, Ha Tinh province) and American pilot William Andrew Robinson (22 years old).

In 1967, the photograph was featured on a postage stamp issued by the Vietnam Post Office to commemorate the 2,000th American plane shot down over North Vietnam. This stamp was sent to 167 countries, including the United States.

Memories of the morning the American pilot was captured.

Former guerrilla fighter Nguyen Thi Kim Lai, now 70 years old, lives with her children and grandchildren in a small house in an alley off Xuan Dieu Street, Bac Ha Ward (Ha Tinh City). She was the youngest of four siblings in a family from Phu Phong Commune (Huong Khe District).In 1965, after finishing 7th grade, when the American forces attacked North Vietnam, Lai, a young girl, joined the local militia, participating in combat duty and digging tunnels.

"Everyone carried a backpack and a walking stick; nobody minded the hardship," she recalled.At that time, Ha Tinh was constantly bombed by American planes, their roar echoing day and night. Many vital roads through the area were cut off, and villages were destroyed.many.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim Lai stands beside a photograph of herself taken 53 years ago. Photo:Duc Hung

On the morning of September 20, 1965, dozens of American planes dropped bombs on a bridge in Loc Yen commune. One plane was hit by gunfire and caught fire, its pilot parachuting into the mountains of Huong Khe. Receiving a distress signal, three American helicopters arrived to provide support, but one was shot down by the Ha Tinh militia and caught fire. The three pilots continued to parachute down into the mountains.

Ms. Lai recounted that at 9 a.m. the following day, while searching for the American pilot with the militia in the forest of Huong Tra commune, she heard a noise in a rocky crevice a few meters away. Approaching closer, she saw a pilot huddled up, looking terrified. After three warning shots fired into the air by the female guerrilla fighter, he raised his hands in surrender.

Hearing the gunshots, people rushed to subdue and tie up the pilot. A few days later, the remaining pilots were also captured.

"At that time, I was 1.5 meters tall and weighed 37 kg. William Andrew Robinson was 2.2 meters tall and weighed 120 kg. I was the first to spot him, and also the smallest in the squad, so everyone let me carry the gun to escort the American pilot back to the district. On the way back, journalist Phan Thoan captured this moment," Mrs. Lai recalled.

"Famous" thanks to postage stamps.

The stamp depicts "The little guerrilla raising her gun." Photo:Documents

After capturing the American pilot, Ms. Lai was transferred to fight in Quang Tri. In 1968, during a break, her fellow soldier showed her a postage stamp. Recognizing the female guerrilla in the stamp as herself, Ms. Lai exclaimed, "This photo is of me, don't tell anyone, they'll laugh!" and kept it as a memento.

In interviews with the media, journalist Phan Thoan recounted that back then, he was a war correspondent assigned to cover the Huong Khe district. Upon receiving news that the militia had captured an American pilot, he cycled more than 10 kilometers to take the photograph. The photo was later published in many domestic and international newspapers.

The day the photo appeared on the postage stamp, Mrs. Lai became famous. Many delegations sought her out at the place where she was serving in combat to talk to her, interview her, and gather information. Some foreign journalists, unable to find Mrs. Lai, thought the photo was staged. Later, when an international television station made a film about her, they believed it.

The life stories of the two people in the photo.

After a long period of service in the military, Mrs. Lai went to nursing school and in 1977 returned to work at the Ha Tinh Traditional Medicine Institute. She got married and had two daughters and one son. Pilot William Andrew Robinson was captured as a prisoner of war and held for 2,703 days before being repatriated in December 1973.

The former female guerrilla fighter said that in 1995, after seeing a photograph, the late director Le Manh Thich of the Central Documentary and Scientific Film Studio approached her and expressed his desire for her to collaborate on the film "A Reunion After 30 Years," sponsored by NHK (Japan). The film would include a scene where she and Robinson meet again. Ms. Lai accepted the offer.

A few months after filming began, one morning in September 1995, while sitting with her grandchild at a neighbor's house, she heard a voice calling: "Mrs. Lai, come home, a foreigner has come to visit." Rushing back, she saw a tall man standing at the gate. After a moment of composure, she exclaimed: "Andrew Robinson!"

After exchanging warm embraces, both Mrs. Lai and Robinson shared that from the moment they first met in 1965, they thought they would never see each other again. In their first greeting, Robinson smiled and said, "You haven't aged much since then." Mrs. Lai replied, "Wow, you're still as young and healthy as ever!"

Mrs. Lai confided to Robinson that her life had changed considerably since her "unintentional fame." She recalled that when her husband first fell in love with her, after they were married, he often said, "I tried to woo you well, but I didn't think you'd agree, because you were so famous I was afraid you wouldn't like me." They lived happily together, their children grew up and had stable careers. In 2008, Mrs. Lai's husband passed away.

Robinson recounted that the period of his captivity in Vietnam was difficult, with so many things he couldn't remember. However, the moment he was transferred to a small village in Huong Khe, where people kindly offered him food and drink, deeply moved him.

"I was so lucky. If, on that day, one of us had pointed a gun at the other, my wife and I wouldn't be here today," Robinson told Lai during their meeting 23 years ago.

Ms. Lai and Robison pose for a commemorative photo upon their reunion 23 years ago. Photo:Duc Hung took the photo.

Seeing Mrs. Lai introduce her happy family, Robinson felt a pang of sadness. His first wife had died of cancer, so Robinson married a second time. He had no children in either marriage. He treated his second wife's two daughters as his own.

"Upon his return to America, Robinson had been unemployed for six years, living in a veterans' association apartment. He worked as a car mechanic, and he and his wife had to live frugally to raise their children. Beside his tall, imposing figure were deep, melancholic eyes and a sorrowful face," Mrs. Lai recounted.

Twenty-three years ago, when they parted ways, Mrs. Lai gave Mrs. Robinson a hat as a memento, promising that if fate allowed, they would meet again in Vietnam. Now in her seventies, Mrs. Lai still wants to see the American soldier from those days, to see how much he has aged and how his life has changed.

"When talking about the suffering and losses of war, Robinson said:Let's all hope this photo doesn't happen again., I replied:I feel the same way; I don't want to see scenes of bombs and bullets, and families being separated.Lai recalled the moment of their final exchange with Robinson..