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| 1/13/2010 | Email this article • Print this article | A People's History of the Hmong Written By Paul Hillmer
By Amy Doeun
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| Cover of “A Peopls’s History of the Hmong” (Courtesy of Paul Hillmer) |
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Paul Hillmer is not the mostly likely person to write a book about the Hmong. His family came from Germany. Even now he is only 2 generations removed from Germany. He works as a professor of history at Concordia University and until about 10 years ago had little to no knowledge of the Hmong community. That was when the first of his Hmong students entered his class. It was in them that he saw the story of his family and other immigrant groups that had come before. "My take on the Hmong experience and Hmong migration to the United States is influenced by immigration history. While their history and culture are unique in numerous ways, many problems the Hmong have faced in this country are not much different from those experienced by previous immigrants."
The problems that Hillmer refers to include "fierce debates over loss of tradition; particularly acute generational conflicts and gangs who not only defy parental authority, but break the law-all are experiences nearly every immigrant group has endured."
In the lives of his Hmong students Hillmer saw a generation in danger of loosing the traditions and history of a people. Hillmer, though only 2 generations from Germany, speaks no German and has little knowledge (or interest in) German culture. While he does not share his personal feelings on his loss of understanding of this personal history, he admits that he did not want the same fate for his students. "I didn't set out to write a book. My initial goal was to encourage my Hmong students to ask their parents the history they'd rarely been told."
As the students moved on Hillmer was hooked. Over the next 7 years he would conduct over 220 interviews which would become the bulk of his book (along with scholarly sources); A People's History of the Hmong published by the Minnesota Historical Society Press in December 2009.
While written as an history book, it is intensely readable and enjoyable. Hillmer uses these interviews that read like a who's who of the Hmong community to enhance the writing, often adding a humorous note or personal touch to a topic that might be hard for some people to deal with, such as multiple marriages, and teen bride abduction.
On a broader scope he writes to what he refers to as the "Six Cs"-culture of the Hmong in Laos and before, Conflicts which lead to their migration, Catastrophe, Camp life in Thailand, Citizenship and Contemporary issues. Each of the Cs covers a section of the book.
Readers are not only struck with the love with which Hillmer writes, but also the knowledge. While the Hmong culture has been kept apart from the dominant culture for many years, Hillmer suspects that it is even now slipping into history for many young Hmong born and living in the United States. Is this inevitable? Hillmer said from the beginning that he looks at Hmong history through the lens of immigration history. This has certainly been the case for multiple cultures before. But in this work I feel that Hillmer hopes to combat that - if even a little.
He has made the interviews available through the Hmong oral history project for other scholars and citizens alike. This book will be of interest to people who do not have any knowledge of the Hmong; to people who would like more information; to young Hmong who never took the time to learn more.
It is an enjoyable read, though at time controversial. Hillmer works to provide both sides of the story whenever possible, including stories from Hmong that fought on the "other side"-the Pathet Lao. He also is not afraid to cover difficult topics, including animal sacrifice and the reasoning for why Hmong men have been given the leadership roll in the family. He explains the history clearly, yet in depth enough for the book to be useful for a scholarly text.
Hillmer told HMONG TIMES that one difficulty in writing the book was keeping it short enough for the average person to be able to read it. One of the most valuable things about this book is for the Hmong to be able to see their history from the perspective of an outsider looking in. This in many ways allows for a "bigger picture" look that gets beyond politics and personal grievances. Even if you think you have a good grasp of Hmong history you will learn something new in the pages of this outstanding book.
Hillmer will be at Concordia University January 28th at 6:00 pm to launch his book.
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St. Paul, MN
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