Y2K fears persist among St. Paul's Hmong community (for educational and fair use)

(St. Paul-AP)

While most Americans see minimal fallout from the so-called Y-2-K computer bug, some recent immigrants aren't so sure. Older Hmong (mung) immigrants in particular have picked up only parts of the Y-2-K discussion, and some are reportedly so fearful they have left the country. Yang Chan Vang works for radio station W-M-I-N in St. Paul. He devotes much of his Hmong radio hour to the Y-2-K issue becausemany older Hmong don't understand English or watch the news. Millennium rumors among St. Paul's Hmong include nuclear warheads falling from the sky, 47 days of darkness and the coming of the apocalypse. Some also fear battling Minnesota's cold weather without heat. The city of St. Paul has held several meetings in Hmong neighborhoods to attempt to quell Y-2-K fears.

-- Lara (nprbuff@hotmail.com), November 29, 1999

Answers

I trust the Hmong elders have taught some of their cultural survival skills to the next generation. These folks have been around fighting the damn "flat landers" for a whole lot longer than this Piss-ant nation we like to think is so great. My guess is, like the Kurds and many other great mountain people of the world, (most of whom we americkans have betrayed with our lies) the Hmong culture will survive the next debacle and survive as family groups of people who still are more in tune with "god's way" than the supposedly correct western version we in ameicka think we have. Notice to the Hmong: you are welcome in these central mountains of idaho if the things go bad. Together we'll fight these heathens, that think they know more than the rest of us. They are not even great pretenders.

-- bobo (bo@idaho.com), November 29, 1999.

I was talking with someone who is a social worker in a Connecticut city with a large immigrant population. She reported that the Cambodian community there was very concerned about Y2k. OTOH, she said that the Hispanic community in that city was not concerned at all.

Many of the Southeast Asia immigrants know too well what happens if a society breaks down.

-- Firemouse (firemouse@fcmail.com), November 29, 1999.

Thanks, Lara, for starting this thread.

I worked with Southeast Asian immigrants up until a year ago, but I was not able to speak about y2k with them then, and haven't since, so I have been wondering throughout this year how well they are preparing.

I hope anyone else with insights into their situation will post to this thread.

-- jor-el (jor-el@krypton.uni), November 29, 1999.

When I lived in San Francisco years ago, one of the banks threatened to fail. The Chinese/Asian customers lined up to withdraw all their money. There's no FDIC in their countries, & people really can & do lose every penny when a bank fails.

The bank managers had a hard time explaining to the Asian customers that their money was insured & not really at risk. It's interesting that foreigners' distrust of their own government can be WAY deeper than ours.

-- and we thought (Klinton@was.bad), November 29, 1999.