Systemic racism continues to persist in this country, and while there are those who will try to divide us, to use us as a wedge against one another, Hmong American Community of Oregon (HACO) affirms that Black lives matter and stands in solidarity with our community in the fight against anti-Black racism.
Our parents, elders, and many of us fled from war-torn Laos to refugee camps, and then to the United States, a country understood as the land of the free. What we may not have known was that less than 10 years prior to the fall of Laos in 1975, Black Americans, after hundreds of years of oppression, led the civil rights movement, fighting for that long-promised freedom in this very country. Black Americans paved the way and helped secure many of the rights and opportunities we have today.
We will not stay silent as Black Americans are harmed and killed due to systemic racism and police violence. We support the peaceful protests happening locally, across our country, and around the world to demand justice, and we are committed to addressing anti-blackness in our own community. We are connected in our struggle for social and racial justice, and we will work in solidarity toward liberation for all.
Our parents, elders, and many of us fled from war-torn Laos to refugee camps, and then to the United States, a country understood as the land of the free. What we may not have known was that less than 10 years prior to the fall of Laos in 1975, Black Americans, after hundreds of years of oppression, led the civil rights movement, fighting for that long-promised freedom in this very country. Black Americans paved the way and helped secure many of the rights and opportunities we have today.
We will not stay silent as Black Americans are harmed and killed due to systemic racism and police violence. We support the peaceful protests happening locally, across our country, and around the world to demand justice, and we are committed to addressing anti-blackness in our own community. We are connected in our struggle for social and racial justice, and we will work in solidarity toward liberation for all.