Who Are The Hmong? The Hmong are a group of people that orginated from Mainland China. Although the Chinese called them "Meo," or "Maio," meaning "barbarians," the Hmong people called themselves Hmong which means "Free People," The Hmong are neither related to the Chinese, Lao nor Thai people, even though their appearance, culture and language resemble those belonging to the three different ethnic backgrounds.

The History of The Hmong... According to historians, the Hmong people were orginally found in China, in the provinces of Kweichowm, Yunnan, Hunan, and Kwangsi four thousand years ago. They lived a relatively peaceful life on the mountainous hills Approximately 200 years ago, they faced prosecution from their Chinese neighbors. Many of them were forced to leave their homeland to the south while others stayed under lived under oppression under the Chinese. Those who left found refuge in the unoccupied mountainous area of Burma, North Vietnam, Thailand, and Laos. In 1975, when the Communist party took power in Laos, the Hmong who had settled in this country once again fled to Thailand for refuge. They were placed in refugee camps and awaited to be transferred to a "third country" for political asylum. Some of the Hmong refugees were sent to Australia, France, Canada but most were sent to the United States. In the United States, most of the Hmong resettled in California, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Oregon, Washington, Colorado, and North Carolina. They are also found in other states, but in less significant numbers.

Goals And Objectives Of The Hmong Students Association Promote higher education for Hmong students Help motivate Hmong people to be productive and educated citizens Encourage cross-cultural understanding on campus. Serve as a bridge of communication between the Hmong people, CSU Stanislaus and the local community