Listening to Neglected Voices: Hmong

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Listening to Neglected VoicesHmong Public
Lands in MN WI
Dave BengstonMichele Schermann
MaiKia Moua, Tou Thai Lee
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Michele Schermann, U of MN
Dave Bengston, USFS
Tou Thai Lee Eleazar Fue Lee
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Background on the Hmong

• Hmong Kingdom in China 4,000 5,000 yrs. ago
• 19th century migration from China into SE Asia
• About 4.5 million Hmong in the world, about half
  in southern China
• Secretly recruited by the CIA in the 1960s to
  support US in Vietnam

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Focus Groups
Purpose To listen to the Hmong community in
order to learn about their needs concerns
related to public lands Outcome Help managers
be more responsive to better serve the Hmong
community
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Focus Groups
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Whats special about favorite public lands?

• Stress Relief No wonder why men like to go
  hunting, because they say when they are outdoors
  they forget about everything You dont remember
  about the stress at home.
• Reminder of Homeland in Laos Hixon Forest takes
  us right back to Laos. The trees and roads are
  like in Laos.
• Less Harassment The owner park staff / ranger
  of this park is a lot nicer than other parks
  owners that is one reason we like going.

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• Good Experiences Positive experiences were
  universal in character, e.g., good times with the
  family, seeing Northern lights for the first
  time, teaching little brothers how to fish.

• When your family is together it is a happy
  time.

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• Bad Experiences Discussion focused on racism,
  discrimination, hostility, harassment from

1. Public Land Managers They need to select
people with a good heart as officers. They
would be much kinder and gentler towards the
Hmong. Past officers have been unkind and mean to
the Hmong. Always remember that Hmong are here
because we lost our country and have to be here.
Dont hate Hmong.
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Bad Experiences (cont.)

• 2. Private landowners
• I mean if you just go near their land, they do
  not like you and yell at you. This has happened
  to me many times.
• 3. White recreationists
• The third time we went hunting at 72 and we
  shot another buck and they tried to come again to
  steal the deer just like before. He said, You
  Hmong do not know the rules of hunting. This deer
  was mine and you shot it.

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Needs Concerns

• Needs and Concerns
• Low literacy rates
• Half of, Id probably say about one third of
  hunters that go out there cant even read that
  book. And they dont even know the rules and
  regulations except through people like me who can
  read the book.

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Needs Concerns
Confusion About Public/Private Land Rules

• Most new refugees and myself dont know the
  signs for the public land from private land. We
  need to know which is public land and which is
  private land We are afraid that we might
  trespass onto private land. (New Refugee)

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Needs Concerns

• Safety of Children Women expressed concern
  about their childrens safety.
• Land ethic Concern about trash left on public
  land, overuse of resources, deteriorating quality
  of public lands, what future generations will
  inherit, the need for a land ethic.
• Fears Participants expressed a variety of
  fears, including fear of water, spirits in water,
  etc.

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Suggestions for Improvement

• 1. Cultural Training for Land Managers

And they have to have training for the managers,
park managers, about the Hmong to understand
the Hmong more. So when they see us, they will
not hate us and not ask Who are these Hmong? I
think that is really crucial.
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Suggestions for Improvement

• 2. Training for Hmong
• Rule changes
• Hunting safety
• Training for women (e.g., about gathering plants,
  private land)
• Hmong should also train themselves
• Hmong leadership must promote responsible use of
  public lands

Hunter education class held at Hmong American
Friendship Assn., Milwaukee
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Suggestions for Improvement

• 3. Hire more ethnic/minority DNR employees,
  including Hmong.
• 4. Need for more signs, explanations of rules.
• 5. DNR should report the number of Hmong fish
  game violations to local Hmong community
  organization.
• 6. Dont assume all Hmong are bad Need for
  patience understanding Dont yell.

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Special Needs of New Refugees
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Special Needs of New Refugees
1. New refugees lack basic knowledge

• We are new so we do not know We dont speak
  English. We dont know the rules of going to the
  park or fishing. I would like for them to teach
  classes about rules of fishing. (New Refugee)

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Special Needs of New Refugees

• 2. Need for training
• 3. Train the anchor family
• 4. Need for mentors / buddy system
• 5. Need for interpreters, volunteer interpreters
• 6. Low income of new refugees
• 7. Communicate through the Hmong community
  organization

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8. Dont yell

• We want those owners to warn us nicely that we
  are on private land so we wont do it again next
  time rather than just yell harsh words at us.
  They shouldnt tell us to go back to our own
  country or treat us like dogs We are already
  upset and angry that we dont have a country of
  our own, yet here in America, everywhere we go,
  they always yell at us and look down on us! (New
  Refugee).

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Additional Themes Chai Soua Vang Fallout
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Chai Soua Vang Fallout

• Increased Harassment
• So I think ever since the happening with that
  Hmong person Chai Vang things have changed.
  This has happened and there is a clear
  difference.
• Need to walk away from potential conflict
• They dont want to have another Chai Vang
  case out there. So we just walk away.

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Chai Soua Vang Fallout

• Concern about new refugees potential for
  another incident
• Dont just yell at them or point guns at these
  new refugees These are sons of deceased Hmong
  soldiers who fought in the war in Laos. They are
  already stressed out.

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Appreciated being listened to

• I am happy that there is a study like this.
  Perhaps it will go further and other people will
  notice and our words will be distributed so they
  will know how we feel. It is a start and it is
  very good.
• An important thing is that you are willing to
  ask us how the government can help us.

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Ua tsaug! Questions?
For additional information or questions, please
contact David Bengston, dbengston_at_fs.fed.us