By Lionel Rosenblatt and Bill Lair
12/05/2004

The killing of six hunters in northern Wisconsin by a Hmong-American has generated more news in the U.S. about the Hmong people than any recent event in their unique history. Nothing can exculpate the killings, but this tragedy should not blot out the record of a people who have made a heroic -- though little-known -- contribution to the United States during the Vietnam War for which they paid a very heavy price.

The admitted shooter is Chai Vang, a Laotian Hmong who has lived in the US for almost 25 years. Vang reportedly has said that he was taunted by hunters who informed him he was on private property and that a shot was fired in his direction before he apparently cracked and killed six.

This tragic encounter in the forest should not overshadow the accomplishments of the Hmong when they were brave and loyal US allies in the Vietnam War. In the 1960s and 1970s, the U.S. funded and directed the so-called "Secret War" in Laos to divert major elements of the North Vietnamese Army from attacking South Vietnam which was defended by hundreds of thousands of American and South Vietnamese soldiers.

The Hmong, one of the largest ethnic groups in Laos, were major players in this “Secret War.” The Hmong army, under General Vang Pao, took on the North Vietnamese and successfully confronted the Communist forces, thus obviating the deployment of American soldiers and reducing the threat to American lives in South Vietnam. They were offered rewards to turn against the Americans, but continued to fight with us instead. In some of the riskiest operations of the war, the Hmong soldiers also guided U.S. Air Force strikes and gathered intelligence along the Ho Chi Minh trail, in North Vietnam and in Communist China.

The valiant role into which the United States thrust the Hmong led to the deaths of approximately 10,000 Hmong soldiers. Per capita for the Hmong, this was the equivalent of hundreds of thousands of soldiers killed. Yet because the U.S. kept the war in Laos secret, few people are aware of this story of Hmong valor.

In 1975, when the U.S. allies in SE Asia were defeated, the Hmong still wished to carry on against the Communists. They were hoping at least to carve out a refuge for themselves in western Laos. The U.S. refused to supply them and the Hmong eventually were forced to escape to Thailand where they lived in refugee camps. Many still live in these camps today.

Refugees International was founded at this time to promote the protection and resettlement of refugees from Southeast Asia like the Hmong. This advocacy has helped lead to the resettlement of many Hmong refugees and their families in the United States, and large communities have developed in California, Wisconsin and Minnesota.

This leads us to the other untold story of the Hmong -- the contributions that the 195,000 Hmong-Americans have made to the United States while they have lived in this country. In the U.S., the Hmong have quietly been adjusting to a new kind of life. They have raised their families and their children excel at school. In 1997, Hmong-American schoolchildren in six school districts in Wisconsin performed above the national norms on standardized tests and graduated at a higher rate than white and non-Asian students. Although the median family income for the Hmong is still low, many ultimately have succeeded professionally. They work hard as managers, sales professionals, school principals, construction workers, farmers and other occupations.

Now the clash in the forest threatens to demonize the Hmong-Americans to the American public across the country. We encourage all to use this opportunity instead to gain a greater understanding of the Hmong community and to thank them for the extraordinary contribution they have made to the U.S.