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| COMTEMPORY ISSUES My Wish For 2004: Become Aware of the Need to Raise a New Generation of Hmong Intellectuals Hello everyone, I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a very happy New Year for 2004. My wish for this coming year will be focusing on the meaning of higher education and the development of Hmong studies. For the past three years, I have been working with the University of California, San Francisco - maybe it was too comfortable so that I was not aware of all contemporary issues, especially the most important part such as building network and structures such Hmong programs inside of the universities to support the growth of a new generation of intellectuals. Since I stopped working with this university, I came to across many issues that made me become aware: we really need to build a place for intellectual and academic excellence for the growth of Hmong community in America. The following text may question you. But please, read it with distance in trying to capture the "big picture" of what Hmong community will be in the next 25 years. Take time to seriously think about that issue. As I am an outsider coming from a far country, I may "see" more your weakness and strength, which may help you all to find ways to improve your quality of life. Indeed, my search of a faculty position --in Cultural and/or Medical Anthropology, Linguistics, Ethnic Studies, Asian American Studies-- took me to visit many university programs, especially in universities where there are lot of Hmong people. I did realize that there is no Hmong study program; otherwise there is program that would promote academic study on Hmong history, culture or language, or a program that goes beyond the religious orientation. In Fresno, house of more than 25,000 Hmong, there is no Hmong study program. For students, especially graduate students seeking to study the Hmong ethnic group in sight of obtaining a PhD, there is no place to go to really find qualified mentors. Ihave to say that I was petrified of astonishment. Why are there Armenian, African, American, Japanese and other studies as minor or major with academically trained scholars? How did they do? Why is there no Hmong minor study in universities where there are really needs? I know by my contacts with students that there are needs. In addition, for the growth of Hmong community into higher education and academic excellence, there is need to raise a generation of Hmong intellectuals with bicultural and bilingual competency, abilities and academic skills. Hmong people know how to advocate. But without a group of intellectuals capable to criticize issues as way of improvement, there won't be any chance to truly enhance our community in the best way. We do need to learn to take distance from passionate topics and to see them simple "matters" at the same time we do need all to share common vision and collective consciousness. In the study of the historical background of social movements, intellectual awareness constitutes the ferment, the gatekeeper or the collective consciousness of the whole group. And Hmong community needs this kind of group of intellectuals being able to work together to raise a generation of generous and engaged intellectuals. It is such a ridiculous game for many of these so-called intellectual spending time to count and to deduct the number of Hmong doctors, of lawyers, waiting their turn to become THE intellectual leader of the group, even if it is explainable: this ideology may be borrowed from the American ideology of ?Pioneer? or "New Frontier" that would be superimposed by the reinterpretation of Hmong messianism where it is question of waiting the return of a King. (The Lord of the Ring captured so well many people and group's utopia, that's why it is so famous). The reality is that: there is a paradox in the gaps between the needs of the new generations and the level of awareness, of leadership and of commitment of the so-called Hmong intellectuals and of many community leaders more interested by personal enrichment. It is hard to think that you, intellectuals, could think that you can survive alone in building your own Hmong minor study somewhere. To build a program, you may need more than one expert in Hmong studies. Everyone wants to be the first --even if this paradigm of being the first may intend to surviving purpose. However, our teenagers and young adults need guidance from academic excellent professors. In the whole UC (University of California system), there are less than 5 graduate students, a too small number for a so big and so poor population of 70,000 Hmong in the whole California. Why could our children not go to the UC? It is the best place to educate future leaders with good training and good social networking support. I have visited Fresno state university (CSUF) Asian American programs, and I just kept telling that there is something wrong about program on Hmong culture and language. Most of the instructors do not have academic training and appropriate competency to really answer the needs of students. Suddenly, all the initiatives to promote higher education among Hmong community seems becoming a questioning joke. It is good to advocate but it seems there are so many years of advocacy already, and nothing seems really happen."I am wondering what higher education means to you all." Do the people who spend so much time to advocate for higher education know the meaning of higher education in term of community development? Otherwise said, is advocacy without a comprehensive vision of society development enough and efficient to truly support Hmong students to get into higher education? Definitively, promoting higher education among Hmong students is fist at all to establish a strong minor Hmong study that will then lead to a major and to PhD program. Thus students will learn --with professionalism and humanity --Hmong culture as an academic subject, a heritage to share and to promote, a culture of creation, of invention and of adaptation. The study of one's heritage is essential for all Hmong and others to grow into maturity and into more analytical and neutral debates on Hmong contemporary issues. Besides, you, outsiders, researchers, please, help the Hmong community to access to more intellectual debates and to create some Hmong studies so that there will be benefit for their children. Hmong culture, language and community are not only good places for research projects. Once you finish, do not leave the place forever. Let's come back to support the Hmong community, the new generations of researchers by giving them the skills and by mentoring them to reach higher education. Do not use them for only your purposes of collecting data. Be aware of your responsibility of their professional growth. Commit yourselves to help your "subject of study" to improve their life, especially when you are experts in applied research. Please, do not use the Hmong students to only do your research, help them to become fully some very good researchers and professors. Again, Happy New Year to you all. I hope all Hmong people will learn to support each other more and to seek unceasingly to promote effort to build what will last for long times and for the well being of the whole group, such as a place for children to grow into intellectual maturity and to collective awareness of interdependence. With love and respect. December 22, 2003 Edited in April 2005 Copyright © 2003 Kao-Ly Yang All rights reserved |
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| TOPICS OF 2003 Janvier Kuv phooj ywg tus zoo tshaj Mon meilleur ami My Best Friend February Neeg no yeej paub tsis tag txog nws tus kheej Essai: commentaire et analyse du texte d'Alain "L'homme est obscur à lui-meme" Essay: Comment and analysis of the text of the French Philosopher Alain "Human Being is obscure to itself" February (Guest Writer: Zhang Xiao) Hmoob suav thiab Hmoob poob teb chaw puas yog tib pab t ib pawg neeg? Le fondement et les caractéristiques de l'identité miao et hmong Common basis and characteristics of the Miao and the overseas Hmong Identity April Maiv thawj tug hlub Le premier amour de May May's First Love August Poj niam kev mus ntseeg ntuj La raison de conversion des femmes hmong au christianisme A Hmong Women's Reason to Convert to Christianity Poj niam kev yeej pheej xaiv coj kev ntseeg La problématique de la liberté de croyance chez les femmes Women's Issues on Freedom of Beliefs September Kev ntsuas thiab luj khoom Quelques systèmes de mesure et de pesée Traditional Systems of Measuring and of Weighing October Paj huam hais txog cov neeg laus kev sib hlub Une histoire d'amour du troisième âge A Piece of Hmong Elderly Love November Niam Nkauj Ntsuab Paj Nra Yaj Miss Hmong Pada Yang November Kev cob qhia poj niam hmoob rov los pab haiv neeg hmoob Encouragement pour les femmes hmong aux actions collectives Encouragement for the Hmong Women to Collective Actions November Keeb Kwm Tsim txoj cai AB78 Histoire de la proposition de loi AB78 History of the Assembly Bill AB78 November Kev sib cog lus ua niam txiv sib hlub mus tas ib txhis Contract de mariage entre Nushilong et Gaojoua Marriage contract between Nusheelong and Gaojua Vim licas Saub tsis nrog hmoob nyob? Pourquoi Shao a t-il abondonné les Hmong? Why did Shao leave the Hmong people? November 24 Hmoob cov teeb meem cov loj tshaj rau xyoo 2000 Analyse des problématiques des Hmong Américains-recensement de 2000 Analysis of Hmong American most sensitive issues - Census 2000 December Kuv kev ntshaw rau peb Hmoob rau lub xyoo tshiab 2004 Mes souhaits de bonne année pour 2004: devenir conscient(e) des besoins d'éduquer une nouvelle génération de Hmong intellectuels My Wish for 2004: Becoming Aware of the Need to raise a New Generation of Hmong Intellectuals |