Typically the Hmong culture doesn't get much recognized much outside of Hmong homes, so many children find themselves missing out on learning their history, since it focuses much more on european cultures.
According the the Twin Cities Daily Planet, St. Paul public schools added a Hmong history section on Sunday to their social studies program.
Michelle Bierman, the Supervisor of Instructor Reform and Free Service Teaching for SPPS told the Daily Planet, "the Absent Narrative are stories of individuals who were there during the historical time period," said Bierman. "But their stories are often not told, when we re-tell the history.
The absent narratives that Bierman referred to is the that of Hmong immigration, and history within the United States.
Minnesota is home to an estimated 60,000-70,000 Hmong, making it the 2nd state with the largest Hmong population, according to Minnesota Institute of Public Health. This is a huge proportion of the U.S. Hmong population.
Many see the addition of the curriculum not only as a step forward for the Hmong community, but for St. Paul Public Schools.
"Many internal staff at SPPS and community members was involved in this initiative to be able to bring this forward," Chong Lee, Take Action Community Organizer, Co-Chair on the Education Committee told the Daily Planet.
http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/news/2011/04/13/spps-adds-hmong-history-curriculum
http://www.miph.org/blog/hmong-minnesota
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