Rice sacks? Well these Hmong and Laotians should know it well

[theking]

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Rice Sacks and Blessings

Hmong and Lao volunteers feed their communities


very April the Humboldt Grange fills with music, prayer, the chanting of Buddhist monks and Lao food — tables laden with aluminum trays of fried fish, spring rolls, rice cakes and pungent salads — some of which families bring up in silver chalices as New Year's offerings to their ancestors. But this year, under the threat of COVID-19 and the restrictions of the resulting shelter-in-place order, there would be no feast, no families and friends gathered on mats, praying shoulder to shoulder to mark the lunar new year. But that doesn't mean they're not coming together.

Instead, a group of local Lao and Hmong folks joined to help bring much needed food and emergency supplies to families in both communities. On May 2, with $8,000 in funds from the Humboldt Area Foundation's COVID-19 Regional Response Fund, volunteers distributed Southeast Asian food staples, first aid kits, school supplies and health information related to COVID-19 translated into Hmong and Lao to some 70 families.

When Pata Vang, a Hmong American who works as a clinical social worker, heard about potential grant money from HAF, she reached out to "people I knew were willing to put in the work," some of whom were old classmates from Humboldt State University, like Ampha Mannorind and Thavisak "Lucky" Syphanthong. The two are, respectively, the president and vice president of the NorCal Lao Foundation, a nonprofit that grew out of a traditional dance group to support and sustain Lao culture in the area. Once the budget was secured, members, friends and relatives got their assigned tasks.



Over the phone last month, Malina Syvoravong, who was working on the logistics of supply lists and sourcing, explained that while the idea of Asian Americans as a "model minority" is still prevalent in mainstream culture, many in Lao and Hmong communities are low income. Elders and others with language barriers find it difficult to access resources. In some cases, existing need is exacerbated by the economic fallout of the pandemic. "Families might be losing business, losing income. And a lot of households are multigeneratio nal, and that's a lot of mouths to feed," said Syvoravong.

Even if Lao and Hmong families are able to access supplies from Food for People, which Vang noted is a great source of fresh vegetables, the concept of stocking up on staples varies from culture to culture.

"The needs of Lao and Hmong families, their diet is just so different from the average American person," said Syvoravong. "During this time you should never buy food you're not going to eat [to avoid food waste]. Most Lao and Hmong families eat a lot of rice, not a lot of dairy, a lot of fresh greens. Beans don't do well with the stomachs of a lot of Asian Americans." Elders especially might have trouble with a sudden change in diet in an already stressful time. Citing the drop in business Asian markets and Chinatowns all over the country have suffered since the pandemic reignited anti-Asian racism and xenophobia, she said, "We hope to purchase a lot of these foods from a lot of the smaller Asian American stores. We want to use this money to help those businesses thrive."