For 50 years, Hmong immigrants and their children have shaped Minnesota culture
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This year marks 50 years of Hmong refugee resettlement and immigration to Minnesota.
When communists took over Laos in May 1975, many Hmong people had to quickly escape. Across the Mekong River in Thailand, Hmong people were homeless and stateless. They'd been allies of the United States during the Vietnam War and had to flee as the U.S. pulled out.
The first Hmong family arrived in Minnesota on Nov. 5, 1975. Dang Her qualified for asylum because he worked for USAID — the U.S. Agency for International Development — and an American co-worker and his congregation sponsored Her and his wife Shoua Moua.
Fifty years later, the Twin Cities has the largest Hmong population out of any U.S. metropolitan area, according to data compiled by the Pew Research Center. Nearly 95,000 people identify as Hmong in Minnesota, according to Minnesota Compass.
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In honor of 50 years of Hmong culture in Minnesota, MPR News will feature Hmong Minnesotans in a variety of careers through the month of May as part of our “ChangeMakers” series. This series highlights Minnesotans from diverse and often underrepresented backgrounds who are making an impact.
We’ve identified people with a diversity of experiences who, throughout the month, will share those life experiences and show us how they’ve shaped Minnesota’s culture through literature, food, art, policymaking, agriculture and more.
MPR News is committed to the mission of informing, including and inspiring all those who find our content. Our goal is to work every day toward improving our journalism and service to the public.
The first installment of the series is on pastry chef Marc Heu. You’ll find the series throughout the month at mprnews.org/changemakers. We are grateful for our ChangeMakers for sharing their stories with us.
Email tell@mpr.org with any questions or feedback.