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The Hmong believe in three spirits - past, present and future. When these spirits combine, they are believed to cause a feeling of déjà vu. In that case, many young Hmongs are living in a constant state of déjà vu as they balance cultural traditions, adapt to the present and look ahead to their futures.
As was explained during the Hmong Student Association Heritage Day Presentation Monday, Hmongs are believed to have come from China, Laos and Thailand, among other countries. In China, where the Hmong were and still are a minority group, there was racial discrimination. Hmong individuals were forced to wear silver necklaces to identify themselves from the Chinese.
When the Vietnam War began, the Hmong had no choice but to join the Americans in the fight for their culture and freedom.
The CIA promised the Hmong freedom and safety in exchange for their help in the war, but the CIA failed to deliver. In the end, little more than 3,000 Hmongs were flown to safety immediately after the war.
More Hmongs were gradually able to immigrate to the U.S. from refugee camps in the years following the war. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Minnesota gained one of the largest Hmong populations in the country.
"Many Hmong elders did not have a positive experience [in the U.S.] but they believe the future will be better for their children," said Vang Xiong, a graduate student in the ethnic studies program.
This positive outlook for the future also translates to an emphasis on education. Many young adult Hmongs raised in America are expected to attend college and have a successful career.
"My parents have become more Americanized over the years, but expectations are very high because of our history," said Sang Yang, an academic support advisor for the Hmong Student Association. "They want me to have a more successful life than theirs."
The differences between Hmong students and their parents are perhaps most evident in the changing rules of courtship.
College students often stay out into the early morning. But according to Hmong tradition, if a date goes past midnight, the man must then marry the women or she will cause her family shame.
There are three types of marriage in the Hmong culture, Xiong said. Agreement is when the potential bride and groom are in love, and bring a dowry to the parents. Another type of marriage is kidnapping - when the man kidnaps the girl and keeps her out past midnight - therefore forcing her to marry him or shame her family. The third type of marriage is negotiation, where cash is presented to the bride's parents and families negotiate the women's bride price based on attributes like education.
Men are dominant in the culture and are allowed to have as many wives as they can afford.
These traditions may seem antiquated to those outside the Hmong race, but families are gradually becoming more modern.
"The majority of Hmong parents are open to having children date outside their own race," Yang said.
But during a panel discussion of Hmong students, the girls admitted that while they are allowed to date whomever they want, most are still expected to marry another Hmong.
New Year's was traditionally a time for Hmongs to find a potential significant other. This remains true, even for modern Hmongs, though the basic flirtations have changed. Instead of asking a girl's last name (to identify which of the 18 clans she belongs to) or where she is from, modern flirtation at the New Year's celebration sounds like any other conversation on a college campus.
"In America we say, 'what's your phone number?' or 'do you have Facebook?'" Xiong said.
The Hmong Student Association New Year Celebration will take place Nov. 15 in the Centennial student union ballroom.
Nia Jonesz is the Reporter news editor
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