Hmong Funerals

Summary:

The tradition of Hmong Funerals as carried out in America (PRX Reversioning)

Additional Credits and Funding:

Edit for original NPR version by Alyne Ellis. Technical assistance by Caryl Owen and Josh Welsh.

Timely on:

May: Asian Heritage Month

Tones:

Informational, Sound Rich, Unusual

Language:

English

Description:

For the thousands of Hmong immigrants who've settled in the United States, life is now a series of challenges and adjustments. Many of them are struggling to preserve their customs from southeast Asia. For most elderly Hmong, this includes the complex and lengthy funeral ceremony designed to guide their souls back to the ancestral homeland. But many obstacles -- from American funeral codes to the standard work schedule -- have forced compromise on this tradition.

In this 8-minute piece, Brian Bull summarizes one such effort that took place at St. Paul's Hmong Funeral home for one of the community's elders, Ying Xiong. With many compelling passages of natural sound and direct, candid interviews with relatives, the four-day ceremony is presented in its elaborate, but heartfelt splendor.

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