Yee Xiong - Week 5

In Chia Youyee Vang's book, "Hmong America", she covers various topics such as the Hmong history, social structure, and contemporary issues. In chapter 5, "Political Activism", she explains the political involvement of the members in the Hmong community and how they navigate this space. The Hmong American community have created several organizations in which they tend to the politics that directly affect the Hmong community. However, how effective have these organizations been in terms of their outreaching to the Hmong community?

Traditionally, elder males in the Hmong clans make most of the decisions. After their passing, the decision passes down to those next in the line such as the eldest son. However, in today's society where there are hundreds of issues that affect the Hmong community, females have been able to participate more in the political space. The first Hmong American woman to be elected as a Senator is Mee Moua; she has been able to pave way for future Hmong women community leaders to take a stance on the politics that affect them. However, I believe politics is still something very new to the Hmong American community and something we’ve yet to fully grasp; we should mobilize more bodies to get involved in this space. Do you think politics is important? And should more Hmong community members get more involved with politics and if not, why? How can more Hmong community members get involved?