Laotian Americans (Lao: ຄົນລາວອາເມລິກາ, romanized: Khonlav Amelika) are Americans who trace their ancestry to Laos. Laotian Americans are included in the larger category of Asian Americans. The major immigrant generation were generally refugees who escaped Laos during the warfare and disruption of the 1970s, and entered refugee camps in Thailand across the Mekong River. They emigrated to the United States during the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s.
The category ‘Laotian American' includes all ethnic groups who lived within the borders of Laos, except the Hmong community.[3]
History
Laotian immigration to the United States started shortly after the Vietnam War.[4] Refugees began arriving in the U.S. after a Communist government came to power in Laos in 1975 and by 1980, the Laotian population of the U.S. reached 47,683, according to census estimates. The numbers increased dramatically during the 1980s so the census estimated that there were 147,375 people by 1990. The group continued to grow, somewhat more slowly, to 167,792 by 2000.[5] By 2008, the population nearly reached 240,532. Included are the Hmong, a mountainous tribe from that country.
Demographics
The states with the largest Laotian American populations (including the Hmong from Laos) are California (58,424, 0.2%), Texas (13,298, 0.1%), Minnesota (10,065, 0.2%), Washington (9,333, 0.2%), Colorado (7,434, 0.1%), Tennessee (6,336, 0.1%), Illinois (5,822, 0.1%), North Carolina (5,566, 0.1%), Georgia (5,560, 0.1%), Florida (4,896, 0.05%), and Oregon (4,692, 0.1%). There are about over 200,000 ethnic Lao in America. Approximately 8,000 to 11,000 Americans are of mixed Lao and other descent. Ethnic Lao people may identify as both Lao American and Laotian American (see also Hmong American).[6]
Most were estimated to live in the West (95,574), followed by the South (44,471), Midwest (37,820), and Northeast (15,382).
According to data collected by the American government in 2013, 18.5% of all Laotian Americans live under the poverty line.[15] A Pew Research Center study published in 2019 found that the poverty rate had dropped to 13% which is equal to the national average.[16]
Gangs have been an issue in the Laotian community ever since the 1980s and 1990s, although like most Asian communities, gangs have decreased in number and/or have received less media coverage for their activity. Gangs like the Original Laotian Gangsters in West Valley City, Utah, Asian Boyz chapters in California which include a large number of Cambodian Americans, but also have Laotian Americans, and other Asian Bloods and Crips gangs have committed serious crimes starting in the 1980s.[17]
Per capita income
In 2014, identified by factfinder census, when Americans' per capita income was divided by ethnic groups Laotian Americans were revealed to have a per capita income of only $21,479 below the American average of $25,825.[18] In 2021 the U.S. Census Bureau reported that the median household income of Laotian Americans was $76,962 which is significantly above the U.S. median of $69,717.[19]
Lack of education and school dropout rates
According to data collected in 2013, 38% of all Laotian Americans drop out of high school.[15]
66% of the population in Laos adhere to Buddhism and Buddhism is the basis and mainstream religion practiced in Laos. Lao Buddhists belong to Theravada Buddhism and are tolerant towards the pre-Buddhist animist or folk beliefs, which is the belief of spiritual essence possessed in objects and creatures. Buddhists residing in rural parts of Lao also maintained the belief in ancestral spirits, which are the souls and spirits from afterlife. Although Buddhism is the major religion practiced in Laos, there are also Christian minority. There are three Christian churches in Laos: Lao Evangelical Church, the Seventh-day Adventist Church and the Roman Catholic Church.
Theravada Buddhist Temple
Wat Lao Buddharam, Hampshire, IL
Laotian-American populations have constructed numerous Buddhist temples, called vat or wat. Over time, the congregation donates money to customize and add on to the facility, as well as to add fine artwork and craftsmanship, resulting in a Laotian Buddhist temple that has some traditional features.[4] Examples include Wat Lao Buddhavong located outside Washington, D.C.; Wat Lao Buddharam of San Diego, California;[20] Wat Lao of S. Farmington, Minnesota; Wat Lao Buddhamamakaram of Columbus, Ohio; Wat Lao Mixayaram and Wat Lao Dhammacetiyaram of Seattle, Washington; Wat Lao Buddha Ariyamett Aram Temple in Morris, Connecticut; Wat Lao Lane Xang, founded in 1993 in Willington, Connecticut; Wat Lao Rattanaram in Richmond, California and the Wat Lao Mixayaram in Lowell, Massachusetts. With the growth of Laotian communities in more diverse areas, they have moved to and constructed temples in rural areas, such as Lane Xang Village, located between Lafayette and New Iberia in Louisiana.[21]
Representation in media
One of the first national Laotian-American publication, Lao Roots Magazine, was published in 2007. The English-language magazine is geared toward the younger generation of the Laotian-American community. Published in San Diego by a small volunteer staff, the magazine has reached widespread national circulation within the Laotian-American community. After the publication ceased, former staff member and Yale University graduate Siamphone Louankang created the popular online magazine LaoAmericans.com,[22] which continues to share stories by and about Americans of Laotian descent.[23]
The documentary film The Betrayal (Nerakhoon) was directed by Ellen Kuras and Thavisouk Phrasavath. It portrays the epic of a family forced to emigrate from Laos after the chaos of the secret air war waged by the U.S. during the Vietnam War. Kuras spent 23 years chronicling the family's journey in this film. The film won a Spectrum Award for the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival; it was nominated for an Oscar for best documentary.[24]
American animated sitcom, King of the Hill between 1997 and 2010, featured ten Laotian-American animated characters in various roles, to include series regulars, recurring, guest roles, or single appearances:
The subject of Jamie Wyeth's painting Kalounna in Frogtown is Laotian American.
Krysada Binly Phounsiri (Lancer) & Kennedy Phounsiri (EraNetik), brothers from San Diego, California who share the same passion for breakdancing, were featured on season 6 of America's Got Talent with a dance team called the Body Poets and are now current performers in the Jabbawockeez - "MÜS.I.C" Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. They are also part of the breakdance crew "The Calamities", which they created in 2002.
Laotian Americans have excelled in a variety of sports achieving success at the collegiate, national and international level. While many of the individuals discussed in this section may not be notable among the general U.S. population, they are considered pioneers in sport within the Laotian American community and many are believed to be the first to compete at a national level or higher. Many of the second and later generation Laotian American athletes are of mixed heritage.
Khan Malaythong is thought to have become the first Laotian American to represent the U.S. at the Olympic games when he qualified for the U.S. badminton team as a doubles competitor at the 2008 Summer Olympics.
Phoothaphone “Ko” Chandetka is a nationally recognized competitive body builder of Laotian descent[27] who has competed on and off for over twenty years. He is believed to be the first Laotian American to achieve notoriety in the sport. Ko won his first NPC title in 1991 at the age of nineteen and competed at the national level as recently as 2016 when he placed 7th in the Mr. Olympia contest.[28][29][30][31]
To be included in this list, the person must have a Wikipedia article showing they are Laotian American or must have references showing they are Laotian American and are notable.
Ko Chandetka, professional bodybuilder, co-author of the book I am Phoothaphone and subject of the 2019 documentary film Fallen Star Rising Sun.[57][58][59][60][61]
