In Laos, almost all , Hmong have been displaced, many several times, by the war. Fathers killed in fighting are now being replaced by their sons, some as young as 11 and Levirate is by necessity practiced with increasing frequency.
Nixon announces troop withdrawal from South Vietnam, and the "Vietnamization" of the War. Ho Chi Minh dies. Secret U. Senate hearings begin on Laos. It is revealed for the first time that the CIA runs military operations in Laos; this is not officially revealed to the American public. Talks being between U. Nixon acknowledges U. Nixon signs Biological and Toxin Convention banning such weapons.
Nixon re-elected for 2nd term. Some 58, Americans were killed. In addition, over a million Vietnamese troops on both sides, and some 4 million Vietnamese civilians, were also killed. In Laos, probably another one million died, including perhaps as many as , Hmong. Over 40, North Vietnamese troops remain in Laos. Vang Pao's men are partially dispersed and unarmed. Some are trying to resume farming, though in many areas the bombed-out terrain is unrecognizable, and many men have been soldiers since they were teenagers.
By this time, the U. Vang Pao continues to defend Hmong positions. April The Fall of Saigon. Last Americans evacuate amid chaos; within 24 hours, the new communist government renames Saigon, and it becomes Ho Chi Minh City. In Laos, Americans inform Hmong clan leaders they are leaving. Van Pao and clan leaders meet, but can not find a solution for their problems.
Some Hmong try to flee, some are killed trying to cross borders, others are arrested or killed when they stay. All high ranking and educated Lao and Hmong, including Touby Lyfoung, are imprisoned in "seminar" camps, many to die there.
Many Hmong flee to Thailand. Vang Pao, and other Hmong leaders, immigrate to U. Vang Pao is required to first divorce several wives. His ex-wives follow him to U. Jimmy Carter elected President. Hmong refugees continue to flee to Thailand. Touby Lyfoung dies in Pathet Lao prison camp, reportedly shot by a guard.
United Nations adopts resolution to investigate use of chemical-biological warfare in Laos, Cambodia, and Afghanistan. The Lee family immigrates to the U. In increasing numbers, Hmong are leaving Thailand refugee camps for the United States. Lia Lee is placed in foster care. Lia Lee suffers irreparable brain damage. Ban Vinai Refugee Camp in Thailand closed. About 10, Hmong escape into Thailand rather than be returned to Laos.
William Clinton elected President. State department insists many disagree that Hmong refugees are not being forced to return to Laos, and face no persecution there. Civil War continues in Laos, as does ethnic cleansing.
Fighting in Laos continues. Clinton starts second term as President. Bush declared President by Supreme Court. Nao Kao Lee, Lia's father, dies.
Many other Hmong flee into Thai countryside to avoid repatriation to Laos. According to some, with the closure of the last refugee camps in Thailand, the Vietnam War is finally over. George W. Bush elected for 2nd term. Year Event France Surrenders to Nazi Germany. Pearl Harbor bombed by Japan. France liberated by Allied Forces. Roosevelt dies in office. Laos becomes an independent state within the French Union. Harry Truman,having won the election in , continues as President.
North Korea invades South Korea. Vang Pao, now 18 and serving in the Lao Army, leads two successful raids on Viet Minh and Pathet Lao positions in Laos; he is sent to officer training school, and becomes an officer in the Royal Lao Army.
Viet Minh invade Hmong homelands in northern Laos in a major offensive; the Hmong,with French assistance, continue to fight back. Vang Pao, now a Major in the Royal Lao army, continues to lead "irregular' Hmong troops in unorthodox skirmishes with the enemy. A military coup in Laos creates a "neutralist" regime more friendly to communists. Kennedy takes office and continues Eisenhower's policy of fighting an unconventional war in Laos, using CIA techniques,strategies, and experts.
Hmong refugees increase as fighting continues in Laos. President Kennedy assassinated, Lyndon Johnson assumes the Presidency. President Johnson orders American ground troops to South Vietnam. US planes dropping food and military supplies to friendly remote military posts in Laos, early s. Lair, Texas. In February, a cease-fire and political peace treaty was signed in Paris, requiring the US and all foreign powers to withdraw all military activities from Laos.
More than , Hmong became refugees in their own homelands. About 50, Hmong civilians had been killed or wounded in the war. Yang Long giving instructions to soldiers who will be trained as radio operators in Long Cheng air base in Laos, late s. Courtesy Yang Long, St. Vang Pao and about 2, Hmong military forces and family members were airlifted from Long Cheng air base to Thailand.
As many as 30, other Hmong crowded into Long Cheng, hoping for escape. The official US military death total in Vietnam exceeded 58, Since , the war had displaced hundreds of thousands of Hmong and other ethnic minority families and often they were relocated to locations developed by US aid workers.
Photo late s. Courtesy Capt. Vang Neng, St. After overthrowing the Laotian monarchy, the Pathet Lao launched an aggressive campaign to capture or kill Hmong soldiers and families who sided with the CIA. Thousands of Hmong were evacuated or escaped on their own to Thailand. Thousands more who had already gone to live deep in the jungle were left to fend for themselves, which led to the creation of the Chao Fa and Neo Hom freedom fighters movements.
Many men also took up arms again to protect their families as they crossed the heavily patrolled Mekong River to safety in Thailand. The first Hmong family to resettle in Minnesota arrived in November The largest wave came after the passage of the US Refugee Act of In , the Buddhist monastery at Wat Tham Krabok—the last temporary shelter for 15, Hmong remaining in Thailand—closed. The census recorded more than , Hmong in the United States. More than 66, of that number lived in Minnesota, most of them in or near the Twin Cities—the largest urban population of Hmong in America.
Toward the middle of May , thousands of Hmong swarmed into the air base at Long Cheng in hopes of being evacuated. The decision to airlift Gen. Vang Pao out of Laos, along with other high-ranking military officers and their families, came from top US government officials. About 2, people were evacuated to Thailand. Those left behind had to trek on foot. Courtesy Thua Vang, California. Skip to main content. Hmong Timeline 4,, BCE Oral tradition and evidence from archives and archaeological finds suggest that Hmong people originated near the Yellow and Yangtze rivers in China.
We always knew that our history was rooted in China. However, our ancestors never got along with the Imperial Chinese. They invaded our lands. Killed our people. This went on for hundreds of years. Many Hmong leaders and their families, including my great-grandparents, moved to Laos to escape being persecuted.
Cher Cha Vang , former military major and Hmong leader, Minneapolis, interview From Hmong at the Turning Point, , by Dr. Yang Dao. The Laotians wanted one kilo of opium per household. They even took our livestock and money. Some of the parents had to sell their children to pay for the taxes. Some parents were so upset they committed suicide by taking poison. Touby Lyfoung , in Dr. Portrait of a Hmong girl in Laos, s.
Courtesy Noah Vang, St. I want to make it clear to the American people, and to all of the world, that all we want in Laos is peace, not war—a truly neutral government, not a cold war pawn, a settlement concluded at the conference table and not on the battlefield. Our response will be made in close cooperation with our allies and the wishes of the Laotian government. We will not be provoked, trapped, or drawn into this or any other situation but I know that every American will want his country to honor its obligations to the point that freedom and security of the free world and ourselves may be achieved.
We had to find a way to stop them. The US had the vision to stop them from spreading into these countries. I aligned with the US because they were the most powerful country in the world at that time. Vang Pao , St. Paul, interview In my generation, education was only for the privileged and wealthy families.
We had no money so I taught myself to read and write in Lao. Where we lived, girls did not attend schools until the late s.
When the war started in our country, the Americans began building small schools in nearby villages where both boys and girls could go learn. For some students, they walked as far as half a day just to get an education. Before the war all the men in our village worked hard and supported their families. We had peace. There was no war. All of a sudden, our lives changed. The men began to disappear. They went to fight for Gen. Vang Pao, for the Americans. Most of our husbands never returned home.
My husband died in the war. We told Gen.
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