00Enrolled HCR 4                                                                                                          
01 Proclaiming May 15 to be Hmong-American Veterans Memorial Day.                                                          
02                                         _______________                                                                 
03 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                             
04      WHEREAS, beginning in 1960, the United States Central Intelligence Agency                                        
05 recruited thousands of Hmong to fight against the Communist Pathet Lao and North                                        
06 Vietnamese Army regulars in Laos; and                                                                                   
07      WHEREAS, in July 1961, Brigadier General Edward G. Lansdale wrote in a memo to                                   
08 General Maxwell D. Taylor that "about 9,000 Hmong tribesmen have been equipped for                                      
09 guerrilla operations, which they are now conducting with considerable effectiveness in                                  
10 Communist-dominated territory in Laos"; and                                                                             
11      WHEREAS as many as 100,000 Hmong were recruited and trained as Special                                           
12 Guerrilla Units to engage the North Vietnamese Army; and                                                                
13      WHEREAS the United States relied heavily on the Special Guerrilla Units to interdict                             
14 the flow of the communist reinforcements and war supplies on the Ho Chi Minh Trail; and                                 
15      WHEREAS the Hmong, although outnumbered, fought against enemy forces to                                          
16 disrupt the flow of troops and war supplies along the Ho Chi Minh Trail; and                                            
17      WHEREAS the Hmong conducted tactical guerrilla actions, flew thousands of deadly                                 

01 combat missions in support of the United States Armed Forces and the Central Intelligence                               
02 Agency, and fought in conventional and guerilla combat with extreme casualties; and                                     
03      WHEREAS the Hmong protected United States personnel, guarded United States Air                                   
04 Force radar installations, gathered critical intelligence about enemy operations, and undertook                         
05 rescue missions to save the lives of downed United States pilots; and                                                   
06      WHEREAS about 40,000 Hmong lost their lives defending democracy,                                                 
07 approximately 50,000 Hmong were seriously injured and disabled, and 3,000 Hmong were                                    
08 missing in action; and                                                                                                  
09      WHEREAS Hmong soldiers died at 10 times the rate of American soldiers in the                                     
10 Vietnam War; and                                                                                                        
11      WHEREAS, because the war effort of the United States in Laos was covert, accounts                                
12 of the sacrifices and service of the Hmong veterans remain largely untold; and                                          
13      WHEREAS the Hmong became refugees because the United States government                                           
14 encouraged them to fight for the United States, and, as a result, thousands of family members                           
15 of Hmong soldiers were evacuated to a United States airbase in Thailand to avoid bloody                                 
16 vengeance by communists in Laos and Vietnam; and                                                                        
17      WHEREAS, after the conclusion of the war, thousands of Hmong soldiers suffered                                   
18 acts of retribution and atrocities by the Pathet Lao and North Vietnamese, causing hundreds of                          
19 thousands of Hmong refugees to flee to neighboring Thailand; and                                                        
20      WHEREAS approximately 50,000 Hmong veterans reside in the United States, and                                     
21 150,000 Hmong and Laotian-born children have graduated from schools in this country; and                                
22      WHEREAS little is known or taught in the United States about Hmong history and                                   
23 the contributions made to the United States by the Hmong people; and                                                    
24      WHEREAS future generations of Hmong-Americans may not learn the full history of                                  
25 the Hmong people's honorable service to the United States unless the Hmong are formally                                 
26 commemorated; and                                                                                                       
27      WHEREAS state and local governments have issued proclamations declaring May 15                                   
28 as Hmong Veterans of America Day;                                                                                       
29      BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature proclaims May 15 to be                                          
30 Hmong-American Veterans Memorial Day, to promote, publicize, and increase awareness of                                  
31 the important role the Hmong have played in United States history, to commemorate Hmong                                 

01 History Month, and to afford an opportunity for people to recognize the service and sacrifice                           
02 of the Hmong with appropriate ceremonies and activities.