Hmong Americans in Michigan
Martha Aladjem Bloomfield
Michigan State University Press, 2014

The Hmong people, originating from the mountainous regions of China, Vietnam, Thailand, and Laos, are unique among American immigrants because of their extraordinary history of migration; loyalty to one another; prolonged abuse, trauma, and suffering at the hands of those who dominated them; profound loss; and independence, as well as their amazing capacity to adapt and remain resilient over centuries. Via personal interviews and extensive research, this introduction to their experience in Michigan discusses Hmong American history, culture, and more specifically how they left homelands filled with brutality and warfare to come to the United States since the mid-1970s. Despite the tremendous losses they suffered for many years, the Hmong in Michigan continue to demonstrate courage and profound resilience.

“My parents saw coming to America as an opportunity to something good for their family–land of opportunity when they came. This is a better life than what we would have had. That’s what they gave us. They said ‘We’re working hard for you guys, passionately. This is a better life because you wouldn’t be where you are.’ Everything they cared about was that we go to school. That was their only expectation.”
— Christine Xiong is a Packaging Engineer  Manager at Ryder Supply in Michigan. Her parents  were Hmong refugees from Laos who came to Michigan in the late 20th century. A picture of her  grandmother, Tong Vue, is on the cover of the book.