The Hmong in Minnesota

The Hmong in Minnesota
THE 150,000 HMONG PEOPLE living in the United States traveled thousands of difficult miles to get here. Many settled in St. Paul, Minnesota, giving it the largest urban Hmong population in the world. Today these Hmong are wrestling with issues of culture and identity, with maintaining ties to the past and seeking to thrive in modern urban America.

 

 

 

 

 

   Part One: Hard Work
The history of the Hmong people, their journey to the United States, and the life of one Hmong-American family in Saint Paul.
RealAudio | The Hmong in China slideshow

Part Two: Leading People
The shift of power and leadership from the older to the younger generation in the Hmong community.
RealAudio

Part Three: Sew it Right
The centuries-old tradition of Hmong hand stitching is a practice becoming less useful as Hmong women create new lives in the U.S.
RealAudio

Part Four: Going Home
Each year more and more Hmong-Americans return to visit Laos to see family and friends. Here is one woman’s journey to the homeland.
RealAudio | Going Home slideshow
 
  Portraits
 

Ly Xiong Pao
A clan leader and shaman, Pao was one of many CIA-trained soliders during the “secret” war in Laos.
RealAudio | Training for War slideshow

Ma Lee
Lee lived in refugee camps for 14 years. But that was after she ran for her life when the war ended in 1975.
RealAudio

May Pa Xenexai
Xenexai found the self-sufficiency she was looking for through business and social services.
RealAudio

Yee Chang
As a Hmong boy discovering his new country, Chang faced both fear and excitement.
RealAudio

Production Credits

Reporter-Producer: Lynette Nyman
Editor: Euan Kerr and Mike Edgerly
Web Producer: Michael Wells
Online News Editor: Bob Collins
Senior Vice President, News: Bill Buzenberg