For decades, Ha Toung kept quiet about his experience in Southeast Asia. Toung, a former officer of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam, migrated to the United States when American troops left Vietnam in 1975.
“We were invisible,” he said about veteran refugees. “We didn’t start talking about what we did until 10, 15 years ago when we realized that there is misinformation being spread. Promoting legacies and the truth is important.”
On Sunday, Toung was one of hundreds of Minnesotans who commemorated the 50th anniversary of the end of Southeast Asian conflicts during the Cold War era, including the Vietnam War and the Secret War.
The conflicts resulted in thousands of immigrants, including veterans and refugees, settling in Minnesota.
The St. Paul event, hosted by the Minnesota Humanities Center, focused on the conflicts’ lasting impacts on Cambodian, Laotian, Hmong and Vietnamese veterans who served alongside American veterans as well as immigrants’ cultural contributions to Minnesota.
Kevin Lindsey, chief executive of the Minnesota Humanities Center, said recognition of every group of refugees and immigrants who came to Minnesota after the Vietnam War is critical today. The state is home to more than 140,000 people from Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia, he said.
“There is a lot of beauty, wonder, amazement and industry within all these communities,” he said. “There should be opportunities to learn about the conflict and space and time for people to learn about the various rich cultures of all of these respective communities.”
Members of the Hailey Dance Studio, a competition dance group, perform as part of Minnesota’s Human Rights Center’s 50th Anniversary Joint Commemoration in remembrance of Southeast Asian conflicts and their lasting impacts on the Cambodian, Lao, Hmong, Vietnamese communities and Minnesota Veterans. (Jerry Holt/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
The event, held at the Union Depot, featured many vendors with a variety of traditional foods and dress. Authors and storytellers also shared their experiences, including Phuoc Thi Minh Tran.
