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From left, Linda Cha, Kaitlyn Cha, Shandra Cha, Savannah Cha and Kelly Cha, members of the "Cha Girls" at the 2012 Hmong New Year celebration at the Washington County Fair Complex. In Hmong tradition, the color, style of dress and dance correspond to different Hmong groups in Laos.
(Chia Cha)
The Hmong American Community of Oregon is hosting its annual Hmong New Year celebration this weekend in Hillsboro. It's a particularly significant new year for the Hmong people, an ethic minority group from Asia. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Hmong exodus from Laos and Thailand.
In the 1960s and 1970s, the Hmong people had sided with the United States in fighting the growth of communism in Vietnam and Laos. But by 1975, South Vietnam had surrendered, Laos was under communist rule, and the last of the U.S. forces had pulled out of the area.
"This withdrawal left thousands of Hmong in danger because of their alliance with the United States," reads a history by the Hmong American Peace Academy. "They were then the target of retaliation and persecution under the new regime. Without a safe place to hide or rebuild their lives, the Hmong were forced to trek across the deep Mekong River into Thailand for freedom."
Many Hmong lived in refugee camps before being allowed to migrate to other countries, including the United States. Tens of thousands made their way to California and the West Coast.
Chia Cha, president of the Hmong American Community of Oregon, was 6 years old when his family moved to Portland in 1978, from a refuge camp in Laos.
The 40th anniversary of the start of the exodus, Cha said, is a time for "reflecting back on our history." This year's Hmong New Year celebration will include videos and a fashion show looking back over the past few decades of clothing. Other events include musical performances and a vendors area where visitors can buy traditional foods such as papaya salad, spicy sausage and black rice, clothes and gifts.
The Hmong New Year coincides with the harvest season. Back in "the old country," Cha said, most people worked in the fields, and each village was predominately comprised of a single family. At the end of the harvest, New Year celebrations were a chance to visit with people from neighboring villages, and thus a time for young people to meet and flirt with people they weren't related to - with chaperones, of course. New Year celebrations include traditional courtship games and songs.
"The majority of weddings happen after the new year," Cha noted.
There are 18 family, or clan, names among the Hmong people, and 11 of them are represented in Oregon. Leaders from each of the 11 Oregon clans will be present for the festival's ribbon cutting ceremony at 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 7.
Cha expects about 2,000 visitors on the weekend's opening day.
If you go: The Hmong American Community of Oregon's New Year celebration is Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 7-8, at the Washington County Fairgrounds, 873 N.E. 34th Ave. in Hillsboro. Tickets are $3 for a single day or $5 for both days. Children age 5 and young and seniors age 65 and older are admitted free.