A Minnesota PBS Initiative
Khou Yang - Wrenching Choices in Times of War
At the end of the Secret War, Hmong women and children often surrendered to the Pathet Lao—but trying to survive in Communist villages meant living in constant fear and being faced with difficult choices. Khou Yang was newly pregnant, a sure sign that her husband was hiding in the nearby jungle. She feared that the Pathet Lao would hunt down and kill her husband if her pregnancy was discovered.
This excerpt is from Twin Cities PBS's documentary Minnesota Remembers Vietnam: America's Secret War.
Learn more at the bottom of the page.
We didn't know whether we were going to die today or tomorrow. We were so poor and starving.
Biographical Details
Submitted From: St. Paul, MN
Primary Location During Vietnam: Long Tieng 
Story Subject: Refugee
About Minnesota Remembers Vietnam: America's Secret War
In the shadows of the Vietnam War, the CIA conducted a secret war in Laos that relied on Hmong soldiers to prevent the threat of communism from spreading deeper into Southeast Asia. Tens of thousands died, both in the fight and in the escape.
Minnesota Remembers Vietnam: America's Secret War explores the untold, turbulent history.
Story Themes: Abortion, America's Secret War, Ban Vinai Refugee Camp, Escape, Family, Fear, Hmong, Laos, Long Cheng, Long Tieng, Pathet Lao, Refugee, Refugee Camp, Saint Paul, Secret War, St Paul, Women