welcome to cambodia town, usa

A stretch of Anaheim Street in Long Beach has been officially named the nation's first "Cambodia Town": Cambodia Town is now on the map. Long Beach, known as the Cambodian capital of the United States, supposedly has the largest concentration of Cambodians outside of the home country. And now it's official:

City and community leaders say the designation not only will recognize the contributions of Cambodians, but also will help revitalize the neighborhood by attracting more businesses, visitors and tourists to the area. San and others are making plans to put up Cambodia Town signs and set up a business improvement district and are considering building a community center and a memorial to those who died under the brutal Khmer Rouge regime.

"Now we have the name," said San, chairwoman of Cambodia Town Inc. "Now we have to make it happen. We have the responsibility to make the place nice."

Long Beach, known as the Cambodian capital of the United States, is believed to have the largest concentration of Cambodians outside of the home country. Some of the first Cambodians in the United States were students who attended Cal State Long Beach in the 1960s as part of an exchange program. Waves of refugees followed in the 1970s as they escaped the Khmer Rouge regime, which took the lives of more than 1 million people. According to 2000 census figures, about 20,000 Cambodians live in Long Beach, but community leaders estimate a larger population.

You've got Chinatown. You've got Little Tokyo. You've got Koreatown. You've got Thai Town... and now, you've got Cambodia Town. God bless America.