Moving and Remembering

Remembering what it means to be Hmong

When​ ​I​ ​decided​ ​to​ ​do​ ​a​ ​digital​ ​story​ ​about​ ​my​ ​family's​ ​immigration​ ​story,​ ​I​ had​ ​a pretty​ ​good​ ​idea​ ​of​ ​how​ ​I​ ​wanted​ ​to​ ​tell​ ​the​ ​story.​ ​Ever since​ ​I​ ​was​ ​young,​ ​my​ ​parents​ ​and​ ​grandparents have told​ ​us​ ​stories​ ​of​ ​how​ ​they​ ​escaped​ ​from​ ​the​ ​Laos​ ​people​ ​and​ ​how​ ​they​ ​reached​ ​Thailand.​ ​It's because of​ ​these​ ​stories​ ​that​ ​I​ grew​ ​up​ ​to​ ​understand​ ​what​ ​many​ ​Hmong​ ​people​ ​faced​ ​in​ ​Laos​ ​and​ ​why they​ ​came ​to​ ​the​ ​United​ ​States.​ ​However,​ ​I still have many ​questions​ ​when​ ​it​ ​comes​ ​to​ the ​date and​ ​time​ ​of​ ​how the​ ​events​ ​happened. ​I​ had ​to​ ​ask​ ​many​ ​family​ ​members​ ​about ​what​ ​years the​ ​events​ ​occurred ​​because​ ​I​ ​was​ ​too​ ​young​ ​to​ ​remember.​ ​

I​ ​believe​ ​that​ ​it​ ​is​ ​important​ ​to​ ​know more about​ ​my​ ​family's​ ​immigration​ ​story​ ​because​ ​it​ ​is​ ​what​ ​allows​ ​us​ ​to​ ​remember​ ​all​ ​of​ ​our​ ​family members​ ​who​ ​passed​ ​away.​ ​Also,​ ​it​ ​helps​ ​us​ ​understand​ ​what​ ​our​ ​people​ ​have​ ​been​ ​through​ ​in​ ​their lives,​ ​and​ ​helps​ ​us​ ​understand​ ​what​ ​it​ ​means​ ​to​ ​be​ ​"Hmong."​ ​It​ ​is​ ​important​ ​to​ ​know​ ​what "Hmong"​ ​is​ ​because​ ​the​ ​longer​ ​we​ ​stay​ ​in​ ​another​ ​country,​ ​the​ ​less​ ​Hmong​ ​we​ ​will​ ​be. Hmong's culture is changing as times go by. For example, many young children are speaking broken Hmong's language and some do not speak Hmong at all. On the positive side, more Hmong are educated in modern medicine compared to the past.

Struggle as immigrants

I​ ​learned a lot​ ​about​ ​my​ ​family's​ ​immigration​ ​story​. Many​ ​of​ ​my​ ​family​ ​members still​ ​want​ ​to​ ​go​ ​back​ ​to​ ​Laos​ ​in​ ​the​ ​mountains​ ​where​ ​they​ ​know​ ​how​ ​to​ ​live​ ​and​ ​be​ ​themselves. I also learned​ ​that​ ​no​ ​matter​ ​how​ ​much​ ​time​ ​has​ ​passed,​ the ​Hmong​ ​people​ ​will​ ​never​ ​change.​ ​I found​ ​out​ ​that​ ​even​ up to ​the​ ​day​ ​my​ ​grandpa​ ​passed ​away,​ ​he​ ​never​ ​once​ ​loved​ ​the​ ​United​ ​States​ ​or forgave​ ​them​ ​for​ ​not​ ​fulfilling​ ​the​ ​promise​ ​they​ ​have​ ​made​ ​for​ ​the​ ​Hmong​ ​people.​

​This​ ​fulfillment of​ ​the​ ​promise​ ​is​ ​something​ ​I​ ​did​ ​not​ ​take​ ​much​ ​time​ ​to​ ​think​ ​about​ ​it.​ ​I​ ​believed​ ​that​ once ​Hmong people​ ​came​ ​to​ ​the​ ​United​ ​States​, ​​they​ would be ​happy,​ ​but​ ​it​ ​was​ ​all​ ​a​ ​lie.​ ​​I​'ve ​come​ ​to​ ​learn​ ​that​ ​many​ ​other​ ​immigrants​ ​from​ ​different countries​ ​face​ ​similar​ ​experiences.​ Immigrants believe ​the​ ​United​ ​States​ ​is​ ​a​ ​place​ ​where they​ ​can​ ​make​ ​a​ ​new​ ​life​ ​and​ ​see​ ​a​ ​new​ ​smile​ ​for​ ​their​ ​children.​ ​

However,​ ​the​ ​United​ ​States disappointed​ ​them​ ​because​ ​most​ ​of​ ​them​ ​are​ ​used​ ​as​ ​slaves​ ​and​ ​tools​ ​to​ ​get​ ​what​ ​the​ ​U.S.​ ​wanted only. The​ ​digital​ ​story​ ​has​ ​impacted​ ​me​ ​in​ ​many​ ​different​ ​ways.​ ​I​ ​got​ ​to​ ​learn ​more​ ​about​ ​my people,​ ​and​ ​where​ ​I​ ​stand​ ​in​ ​the​ ​United​ ​States.​ ​Also,​ ​I​ ​heard​ ​about​ a ​past​ ​family​ ​member​ ​who​ ​died before​ ​I​ ​was​ ​even​ ​born​ ​and​ ​what​ ​they​ ​have​ ​done​ ​for​ ​their​ ​people.​ ​

Creating my Story

I was impacted academically while learning how to make my digital story. Learning​ ​how​ ​to​ ​make​ ​this​ ​digital​ ​story​ ​is​ ​hard​ ​because​ ​I​ ​have​ ​never​ ​done​ ​something​ ​like​ ​this before.​ ​However, I enjoyed creating this digital story because I got to go back and find all my family's old photos.

By creating this digital story, I get to hear all sorts of stories from family members which I never heard before. ​I​ ​did​n't​ ​want​ ​to​ ​share​ ​my​ ​story​ ​with​ ​other​ ​people​ ​because​ ​I​ ​felt​ ​like​ ​it​ ​was​ ​more of​ ​a personal​ ​thing.​ ​Also,​ ​it​ ​is​ ​a​ ​family​ ​story​ ​that​ ​my​ ​family​ ​kept​ ​for​ ​years​ ​before​ ​they​ ​willing​ ​to​ ​tell me​ ​their​ ​real​ ​self.​ ​Because​ ​of​ ​this​,​ ​it​ ​is​ ​hard​ ​to​ ​share​ ​my​ ​story​ ​with​ ​other​ ​people.

Sharing with my Family

Despite all these, I learned from my experience that it is important to share with others where I came from and what my family has to go through to get here. When I finished my digital story, I shared it with my friends and family so that they can see how far we all have come. They were all proud and happy that all their sacrifices did not go to waste.