Changing Lives of Refugee Hmong Women

by Nancy D. Donnelly

"In an ethnographic study of recent Hmong immigrant families in Seattle, Donnelly examines changing gender roles in both the economic and social spheres as Hmong women adapt to new social conditions and opportunities in the U.S. The author focuses specifically on changing patterns of courtship, marriage arrangements, and economic decision making in the household, and how women incorporate new values while attempting to retain elements of their Hmong identity . . . . An actor-based approach and inclusion of long passages in Hmong women's own words makes Donnelly's ethnographic presentation compelling and highly readable". -- Choice

224 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1994

Reviews

[CTEP]

For July's book club, I read Changing Lives of Refugee Women by Nancy Donnelly. In her book, Donnelly describes her real life experiences with refugee families after the Vietnam War when she was and ELL teacher.

Although her examples are more than three decades old, I really valued her experiences. My time serving new American families at the Northside Learning Center 40 years later still illustrates a similar disparity in education. She describes the legal process that families encounter when they move to America from a different country and how difficult it is to acclimate to life in a new culture and climate. Her examples highlight the changes that need to be made to policy and social services geared for refugees and immigrants.

I would recommend this book to ELL and Citizenship educators because the author is sensitive and her stories are relevant to that are of education. I don't think this book is relevant to most CTEP members' work sites, but her stories are beautifully written and her open-minded evaluation of the education system is thought provoking.