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American Military News
05-05-2025
- Politics
- American Military News
MN House passes bill recognizing Hmong, Lao veterans of ‘Secret War'
Minnesota is on its way to officially recognizing the service of Hmong and Lao and other veterans who fought alongside the U.S. in the 'Secret War' during the 1960s and 1970s in Laos. A veterans and military affairs bill passed by the state House on Tuesday night creates a path to grant official state veteran status for fighters recruited into Special Guerrilla Units by the CIA during the Vietnam War to fight communist forces in Southeast Asia. The anniversary of the fall of Saigon this week marks 50 years since the U.S. ended its involvement in Vietnam, and supporters of the bill gathered at the state Capitol with surviving veterans of the Secret War to call for greater recognition. 'Today, we say their service matters, their sacrifice matters, their story is American history,' said Rep. Jay Xiong, DFL-St. Paul, co-author of the veterans bill and the son and grandson of Hmong soldiers. He added: 'Recognizing SGUs isn't just symbolic, it's a long overdue act of respect.' 'Burden of being forgotten' Ya Lee, a Special Guerrilla Unit veteran who flew T-28 warplanes, said there is limited time to recognize surviving veterans for their sacrifices, and that they carry the 'burden of being forgotten.' Lee, who said he is among 10 remaining T-28 pilots living in the U.S., was among dozens of veterans at the Capitol on Tuesday who showed up in military uniforms to support the bill. At a news conference promoting the bill, Rep. Kaohly Vang Her, DFL-St. Paul, said it's not exactly clear how many SGU veterans remain in Minnesota, but that it's likely fewer than 1,000. During the 1960s and 1970s, many groups across Southeast Asia found themselves drawn into a U.S. war against communist forces within and beyond the borders of Vietnam. Many faced persecution by their governments as a result, with many hundreds of thousands fleeing their homes and eventually ending up in the U.S. But official recognition for their contributions to the war efforts remained elusive for decades. Legislation The House passed a large veterans and military affairs bill containing the Secret War acknowledgement language by a vote of 126-6 on Tuesday, though it'll need a little more work since it differs from the version passed by the Senate. Once those have been smoothed over in a conference committee, the House and Senate will have to vote once again before it can go to Gov. Tim Walz. If signed into law by the governor, the bill would create a definition for veterans of the Secret War in Laos and criteria for eligibility for benefits and privileges for veterans. Those include designation as a veteran on driver's licenses and ID cards, access to state veterans cemeteries, and access to preference in private employment. Anyone who became a citizen under the Hmong Veterans Naturalization Act of 2000 will automatically get Secret War veteran status. Eligibility also extends to those who received a Medal of Honor, Purple Heart or other military award for service in support of the U.S. military operating in Laos. Beyond immediate recognition of veterans who got citizenship for their service, the Minnesota commissioner of Veterans Affairs would be empowered to recognize veterans who served with a special guerrilla unit or other forces that operated from a base in Laos between February 1961 and May 1975. State task force A state task force created by the bill is charged with overseeing the process for official recognition. It is to include the Minnesota veterans commissioner, a U.S. Veterans Affairs Department official, a Hmong American Minnesota resident who served in the military, two Secret War veterans, a U.S. Vietnam veteran and other history and veterans' issues specialists. While the bill creates a process to recognize anyone involved in the Secret War in Laos, a group backing a bill earlier this legislative session to recognize Vietnamese, Lao and Cambodian veterans expressed disappointment that language didn't mention those groups by name. Bana Soumetho, who was born to Lao refugee parents in Thailand and has been working to establish explicit recognition for a broader group of Secret War veterans in state law, expressed her frustration in an email. 'This year marked what may have been the final meaningful opportunity for many of our aging veterans to receive public acknowledgment,' she wrote. 'Instead, it became a painful reminder of how easily their stories can be overlooked — even when the intent is recognition.' ___ © 2025 MediaNews Group, Inc. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Hmong ‘Secret War' soldiers to get veteran status in Minnesota
The Brief Minnesota is on the verge of becoming the first state to recognize as veterans the Hmong and Lao soldiers who fought in the CIA's Secret War. The so-called "Special Guerrilla Units" worked alongside Americans fighting in Laos and North Vietnam, but the U.S. kept their work under wraps until acknowledging the Secret War in 1994. Analysts estimate about 1,000 of the veterans are still alive and living in Minnesota. Once the bill is signed, they will have access to services and benefits given to all American veterans. ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Minnesota is about to become the first state to recognize as veterans the men who fought a secret war for the United States. Slow recognition The Minnesota House of Representatives passed a bill Tuesday night to honor the service of Hmong and Lao soldiers in the Secret War. It's 50 years now since the CIA stopped using these so-called Special Guerrilla Units (SGUs) to fight communism, mostly in Laos and North Vietnam. But recognition has been slow, which they blame on the fact that the U.S. kept what they did off the books. "Every mission, you only know that mission," said Yee Xiong. Xiong never knew the big picture in Laos, even as he flew more than 1,000 missions as a navigator and translator for American pilots on bombing runs. All he knew was he was helping the United States and fighting communism. "We never know that what we did over there was so secret," Xiong said. "We just fight what we're told. Americans said, you do this, and we do this." Soldiers then refugees 30,000 to 40,000 Hmong soldiers died during the Secret War, but Xiong survived until the end. The Americans left and the Hmong became unwelcome in their own country. Two refugee camps later, Xiong made it to the United States, but only now, 50 years later, will he and about 1,000 surviving Hmong veterans get the same rights and services we give American veterans. "For too long, they've silently, slowly waited for recognition of their honorable service and commitment to protect and uphold democracy, to save American lives, and to safeguard American interests," said Rep. Ethan Cha (DFL-Woodbury), the son of a now-deceased SGU veteran. "What this bill says is what they deserve and it's the least we can do."Rep. Cha says Hmong and Lao people would never have come to the U.S. except for the Secret War and the leadership of General Vang Pao, who dreamed of an educated Hmong people welcomed in a democratic society. "This is his dream coming full circle of the day he took on that mantle to fight against communism," said Rep. Kaohly Her (DFL-St. Paul), the daughter of a now-deceased SGU veteran. "We are that dream. And they're finally getting recognition for that." The U.S. gave these war veterans "honorary citizenship" about 25 years ago, but Minnesota will become the first and only state to give them veteran status when the governor signs this bill into law.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
MN House passes bill recognizing Hmong, Lao veterans of ‘Secret War'
Minnesota is on its way to officially recognizing the service of Hmong and Lao and other veterans who fought alongside the U.S. in the 'Secret War' during the 1960s and 1970s in Laos. A veterans and military affairs bill passed by the state House on Tuesday night creates a path to grant official state veteran status for fighters recruited into Special Guerrilla Units by the CIA during the Vietnam War to fight communist forces in Southeast Asia. The anniversary of the fall of Saigon this week marks 50 years since the U.S. ended its involvement in Vietnam, and supporters of the bill gathered at the state Capitol with surviving veterans of the Secret War to call for greater recognition. 'Today, we say their service matters, their sacrifice matters, their story is American history,' said Rep. Jay Xiong, DFL-St. Paul, co-author of the veterans bill and the son and grandson of Hmong soldiers. He added: 'Recognizing SGUs isn't just symbolic, it's a long overdue act of respect.' Ya Lee, a Special Guerrilla Unit veteran who flew T-28 warplanes, said there is limited time to recognize surviving veterans for their sacrifices, and that they carry the 'burden of being forgotten.' Lee, who said he is among 10 remaining T-28 pilots living in the U.S., was among dozens of veterans at the Capitol on Tuesday who showed up in military uniforms to support the bill. At a news conference promoting the bill, Rep. Kaohly Vang Her, DFL-St. Paul, said it's not exactly clear how many SGU veterans remain in Minnesota, but that it's likely fewer than 1,000. During the 1960s and 1970s, many groups across Southeast Asia found themselves drawn into a U.S. war against communist forces within and beyond the borders of Vietnam. Many faced persecution by their governments as a result, with many hundreds of thousands fleeing their homes and eventually ending up in the U.S. But official recognition for their contributions to the war efforts remained elusive for decades. The House passed a large veterans and military affairs bill containing the Secret War acknowledgement language by a vote of 126-6 on Tuesday, though it'll need a little more work since it differs from the version passed by the Senate. Once those have been smoothed over in a conference committee, the House and Senate will have to vote once again before it can go to Gov. Tim Walz. If signed into law by the governor, the bill would create a definition for veterans of the Secret War in Laos and criteria for eligibility for benefits and privileges for veterans. Those include designation as a veteran on driver's licenses and ID cards, access to state veterans cemeteries, and access to preference in private employment. Anyone who became a citizen under the Hmong Veterans Naturalization Act of 2000 will automatically get Secret War veteran status. Eligibility also extends to those who received a Medal of Honor, Purple Heart or other military award for service in support of the U.S. military operating in Laos. Beyond immediate recognition of veterans who got citizenship for their service, the Minnesota commissioner of Veterans Affairs would be empowered to recognize veterans who served with a special guerrilla unit or other forces that operated from a base in Laos between February 1961 and May 1975. A state task force created by the bill is charged with overseeing the process for official recognition. It is to include the Minnesota veterans commissioner, a U.S. Veterans Affairs Department official, a Hmong American Minnesota resident who served in the military, two Secret War veterans, a U.S. Vietnam veteran and other history and veterans' issues specialists. While the bill creates a process to recognize anyone involved in the Secret War in Laos, a group backing a bill earlier this legislative session to recognize Vietnamese, Lao and Cambodian veterans expressed disappointment that language didn't mention those groups by name. Bana Soumetho, who was born to Lao refugee parents in Thailand and has been working to establish explicit recognition for a broader group of Secret War veterans in state law, expressed her frustration in an email. 'This year marked what may have been the final meaningful opportunity for many of our aging veterans to receive public acknowledgment,' she wrote. 'Instead, it became a painful reminder of how easily their stories can be overlooked — even when the intent is recognition.' Disability funding, taxes at issue as MN Legislature crafts state budget Ethics panel: MN Senate President must disclose possible future conflicts Concern over vaccine misinformation prompts UMN initiative to preserve data Walz seeks GOP help on budget, blasts Trump 'chaos' in State of the State speech Jim Gelbmann: Our partisan endorsement process is unrepresentative, polarizing and self-serving
