VIETNAM, February 7 - NEW YORK — Merle Ratner, a renowned left-wing and anti-war activist in the US and a close friend of Việt Nam, passed away on February 5 evening in New York in a traffic accident.

Her husband Ngô Thanh Nhàn, a professor at New York University, said that she was killed by a tow truck in the East Village while crossing the street near her house in Brooklyn.

Merle Evelyn Ratner, born in 1956 in New York City, has a special love for Việt Nam.

She took to the streets to protest against the Vietnam War when she was 13 years old and became famous for hanging anti-war slogans on the Statue of Liberty. She is a co-founder and coordinator of the Vietnam Agent Orange Relief & Responsibility Campaign (VAORRC) in the New York area.

Ratner actively participated in protests against the US war in Việt Nam since the late 1960s, the anti-imperialist movement in the 1970s and 1980s, and anti-racism campaigns in America today.

After 1975, with a deep love for Việt Nam, Ratner campaigned for the normalisation of Việt Nam-US relations, and supported Việt Nam's international activities. She visited Việt Nam many times, and engaged in joint work with mass organisations, the Việt Nam Fatherland Front, and the Hồ Chí Minh National Academy of Politics.

Ratner was awarded the "For the Development of Vietnamese Women" insignia in 2010 and the “For Vietnam Agent Orange Victims” insignia in 2013.

In an interview with Vietnam News Agency on February 2 in New York on the occasion of the 94th founding anniversary of the Communist Party of Việt Nam (CPV), Ratner once again emphasised the leadership role of the Communist Party of Việt Nam (CPV) as a decisive factor behind every achievement and success of Việt Nam.

She affirmed that the CPV is steadfast on the path to socialism, fighting for the values of socialism worldwide and that Việt Nam will certainly succeed on its chosen path. — VNS