2026 Heritage Month

2026 landing page

Each year, our Heritage Month is an occasion to celebrate, spotlight, and educate others about the diversity and history of our communities. However, this year has been unique and, for many Asian Pacific Minnesotans, challenging. For this reason, we spoke with several members of our community who were directly affected by Operation Metro Surge. Throughout the month, we will be sharing these personal stories as well as interesting vignettes and fun facts from across our communities. 

Week 1

Va's story

Va Xiong’s story begins like so many others: at the age of three, he came to the United States with his family and [AM1] other Hmong refugees from the Secret War.
 
Knowing nothing but life in America, he lived as Americans do—and made some of the same mistakes of youth. He experienced Operation Metro Surge through the lens of fear—fear for himself, for his family, and for reliving the trauma he escaped as a child.