Do the people in Minneapolis dislike the Hmong?
I'll be in Minneapolis for the first time for 2 days in a few weeks; I'll be there for a med school interview. One of the reasons I was excited to visit Minneapolis was because of the Hmong market, and culture. Being born in Laos myself, I can related to the Hmong, but truthfully, I am very westernized, and am actually part French and Indian as well. However, I keep reading articles about the negative perceptions of the Hmong there; could someone explain to me the situation there, so I can make an informed decision about my med school?
I've lived in the Twin Cities for the vast part of my 29 years of life. I can't say I've read any articles which display a negative portrayal of the Hmong community and honestly I don't think there is much to base those claims on. There is a large and active Hmong community in the Twin Cities, with the largest concentrations found in parts of St. Paul and nearby suburbs like Maplewood. There have been some issues in the past with Hmong youth in some of the more urban areas getting involved with gangs, but I think alot of it is overblown.
I live in South Minneapolis, so I'm not necessarily exposed to the Hmong community as much as somebody who lives on St. Paul's eastside or Frogtown, but from all of my experience here I certainly don't have a negative perception of the Hmong people. In fact, I think the cities here have done alot to accomodate the Hmong language and culture. If you go around Minneapolis you'll notice that alot of signs have the message in English and Hmong as well as Spanish and Somali beings as those are the four most commonly spoken languages here. I hope you don't let some negative articles pursuade you to overlook the Twin Cities as it is really a great place to study and live. Good luck with the interview!
Laos "Symphony" at National Cultural Hall in Vientiane, Laos 2000
culture laos
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