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Context:Southeast Asians in CaliforniaVolume 12, Number 93, November/December, 1991

Folsom Cordova Unified School District2460 Cordova Lane,

Rancho Cordova CA 95670(916) 635-6815

Judy Lewis, Editor

Year ofthe Monkey

The 8th annual

SoutheastAsiaEducationFairewill be

March 21,1992at Sacramento CityCollege

8:00-4:00

$35.00 per person

Order from RefugeeEducators’ Network.2460 Cordova Lane,Rancho Cordova, CA 95670.Fax (916) 635-0174.Phone (916) 635-6815.

The lunar new year will begin on Feb-ruary 4, 1992. The Vietnamese and Mienalso celebrate their New Year’s on thisday.

The next year is the year of the monkey,2535 on the Buddhist calendar, Cambodia,Thailand, and Vietnam all use the year2535. However, the Lao and Cambodiannew year will not come until April 15.The Hmong new year was on December6, but celebrations continue throughChristmas vacation. The Hmong also call

1992 “the year of the monkey.”Other “monkey years” were 1944, 1956,

1968, 1980, and the next one will be in 2004.The book China, the Culture (Bobbie

Kalman, Crabtree Publishing, 1989) lists thetraits of people born in the year of the mon-key: “You are a genius, but you are notsteady. Though clever and skillful, you canbe impatient.”

Missing some sections—didn't havefonts in the old days, and had to cut-and-paste with real scissors and paste.

page 2 Context: Southeast Asians in California

Three in the Morning and Four in the Eveningcussed with them or they would chatterincessantly in protest.

Grandad said to them, “Our family isbecoming poorer and poorer. There is noway we can eat as much as we did before.From now on, every morning you will getthree pieces of fruit, and every eveningyou will get four pieces of fruit. Howabout that?”

The monkeys were very unhappywhen they heard this. They opened theirmouths and sneered at him, and theyyelped and hollered incessantly. Grandadsaid, “Be quiet! Since you are not satisfiedwith that, how about four pieces of fruitevery morning and three pieces of fruitevery evening?”

After the monkeys had heard thatGrandad changed his original plan, eachand every one of them was happy. Theyall crawled down on the floor to kowtowrespectfully to Grandad Monkey.

(Lin Wen-pao. Folk Stories, Number 2002. Taipei: The Overseas Chinese Library, 1989.

pp. 29-32)

In the state of Sung there was an old manwho liked small animals very much. He es-pecially liked monkeys and raised a greatmany in his house. Because he liked them somuch, his neighbors nicknamed himGrandad Monkey.

The monkeys that Grandad Monkeyraised were lovable and intelligent, and theycould understand their master's feelings.Grandad often spent time with the monkeysand he was very familiar with their habits aswell. He even knew when they were happyor sad.

However, the longer Grandad raisedmonkeys the more monkeys he had. Everyday he had to spend a lot of money to buyfood for the monkeys to eat. After a while,even though everyone in Grandad’s familyeconomized and lived frugally, there wasstill not enough money to buy food for themonkeys. Grandad Monkey could do noth-ing but decide to reduce the monkey’s dailyration of food.

The monkeys, however, had been spoiledand had their own ideas. If their food wasgoing to be reduced, it must be politely dis-

Volume 12, No. 93, November/December, 1991 page 3

Sun Wu-kung,the maincharacter in thewell-known Chinese novelJourney to the West, was bornfrom a rock. According to leg-end, there was a large rock on top ofHua-guo Mountain. One day, therock broke open and out rolled a rockegg. Later, out of this rock eggjumped a monkey.

This monkey was both mischie-vous and intelligent. He led all of the othermonkeys to live in a cave behind a water-fall, and gave himself the title “MonkeyKing.”

Unfortunately, Monkey King was a bittoo mischievous for his own good, and aspunishment he was sent by Tathagata Bud-dha to live under Wu-shing Mountain.Here he stayed until Tang-san Monkpassed by one day and saved him. Themonk took the Monkey King as his discipleand changed his name to Sun Wu-kung.After this, Sun Wu-kung protected themonk and his travelling companions ontheir famous journey to India in search ofBuddhist scriptures.

Sun Wu-kung

Monkey Business!

We cannot find even one English prov-erb that features the monkey. However,there are several “monkey” idioms:

monkey jacket, monkey suitmonkey shinesmonkey wrenchthrow a monkey wrench intomonkey around withhave a monkey on one’s backmake a monkey out of

This could be the start of class activitiesto compare different cultures.

Looking for examples of monkey-tales,monkey idioms, monkey proverbs—brain-storming, working in groups, interviewingparents and relatives, translating fromother languages into English.

Comparing the role of the monkey inthe different cultures. Why aren’t theremonkeys in Russian proverbs? What ani-mal in American stories plays a role likethe monkey? (The coyote?) In what ways?Are there examples of other “trickster”characters in stories from different places?

Are there proverbs said in differentways, using different animals or images toteach the same idea? (For example, “twobirds with one stone” and “kill two eagleswith one arrow”).

page 4 Context: Southeast Asians in California

Wang Yani is a child prodigy fromChina. She began brush paintings whenshe was only 2 years old, and by age 14,she had a one-man show in theSmithsonian.

Yani favored monkeys in her “earlyyears.”

She gives painting demonstrations. Inan article for Smithsonian (volume 20number 6, September 1989) a demonstra-tion is described this way: Entering theroom, barefoot and in demin shorts, Yaniwent right to work. The 8-by-4-foot pieceof paper on which she painted was on alow platform almost flush with the floor.Lithe and graceful, she moved rapidlybetween the paper and her collection ofinks and paints. Loading her brush, she

walked freely across the paper as though itwas a stretch of sidewalk. It was only afterapplying the last brushstroke a half-hourlater that she raised her eyes to the onlook-ers.

Yani’s earliest efforts were simply circleswithin circles. At three, she painted Kitty,and at the age of 6 she painted Don’t Fight(above). By the age of 6, she had completed4,000 paintings.

Her style of painting is called xieyi,“idea writing,” as distinguished from“gongbi,” skillful brush paining. Yani lis-tens to Beethoven (very loud) when shepaints.

Don’t Fight—Yani says,“The two roosters arefighting over the rice inthe basket. I’m tellingthem ‘Stop now!’ I amust with the otherneighborhood children.The roosters are theneighborhood children.”

The Lion is Awake (1983)—The monkeys are about to pay for their mischief. The real painting has shades of gray from thedifferent concentrations of black ink, and splashes of red and blue.

Volume 12, No. 93, November/December, 1991 page 5

page 6 Context: Southeast Asians in California

Red-Bottomed MonkeysOnce upon a time there was a servant girl

who worked for a very rich couple. She wasbadly treated most of the time. Day and nightshe worked hard for them and was given littlefood to eat. Her skin grew rough, her face grewlong, and her body was bent from carryingheavy loads.

One day the rich couple celebrated theirlong life together. Many friends were invited tothe feast. All were given lots of food anddrink—all except for the servant girl, who hadto work extra hard that day. She had to drawwater from the well and carry it back to thehouse many times. As it happened, the sunshone brightly that day and it was very hot.The poor girl felt very sorry for herself and qui-etly sobbed.

An old man happened to pass by and no-ticed her crying. He was equally exhausted. Hewas wiping sweat from his old face with atrembling hand. So she offered him some waterfrom her bucket. Then she hurried back, carry-ing two big buckets full of water on her shoul-ders.

Over the next few days while she was doingher usual chores, she often saw the old manwhen she went to the well. Each time she gavehim some water. He thanked her warmly andafter a few days she began giving him a littlerice as well.

One day he asked: “Why do you alwayslook so unhappy?”

The girl would not answer. He furtherasked: “Why did you cry the other day?”

The girl replied: “I am young but I look oldand ugly. I have no friends, no relatives, and nofuture. All I have is hard work.”

“Well, don’t be too depressed,” he said. “Iam Buddha in disguise to test people’s hearts. Iknow you are a very good and kind girl and Ishall make you happy.”

The old man then ordered the girl to go fora swim at the creek and pick the flowers closeby.

She did what he said. But she picked onlythe white-colored flowers. When she stopped,to her amazement, her skin became smooth andfair and her face very soft. She looked an en-tirely different person. She was now verypretty. Even her old clothes had turned into abeautiful new dress. Delighted, she rushedback to the house.

At first the couple could not believe theireyes. Here was a beautiful girl to carry water

for them. She explained to them what had hap-pened.

Without a word to the girl, the old couplerushed out to the spot where the girl had metthe old man. They took a nice big piece of meatand a jug of wine with them. The trembling oldman was still there. They approached him andsaid: “Please eat this good meat and drink thisgood wine. Then show us how to be youngagain.”

He asked them to swim in the same creekand to pick the flowers of their choice; then theywould see his magic.

The couple swam eagerly in the creek andselected only the red flowers. In their opinionred symbolized good luck and vitality.

Before they had got out of the creek, themagic had taken place: they began to feel itchyall over and began to scratch. Wherever theyscratched, hair grew. Their skin became morewrinkled than ever and they looked very miser-able.

Instead of becoming younger, they had losttheir power of speech and turned into monkeys.They were very alarmed and wanted to kill theold man. In the meantime, he had disappeared.

They dashed home and rushed inside,knocking things over on the way. The girl wasterrified when she saw them and cried out forhelp. The villagers came to chase away the twomonkeys. Nobody realized what had happenedto the old couple.

Night after night the two monkeys cameback to their house but the girl had bolted allthe doors and windows.

They groaned and hung themselves on thewindows and bars. They shook them hard andthe villagers heard their cries. This time the vil-lagers armed themselves with knives and sticksto destroy the monkeys. Afraid of being killed,the monkeys finally left. The villagers advisedthe girl to ward off the monkeys by keeping anopen fire outside the house.

When the monkeys attempted to come backlate at night they had to climb over the fire toget near the house. In so doing, their bottomswere burned. Now they were faced wih nochoice but to go deep into the jungle withburned red bottoms.

Meanwhile the girl waited for the return ofthe old couple. Of course they failed to returnand eventually the girl inherited their fortune.

Taken from Folk Talesfrom Indochina, by TranMy-Van. VictoriaAustralia: VietnameseLanguage and CulturePublications, 1987. pp.61-66, bilingual.

Contact address for thepublisher: PO Box 133,Pascoe Vale South3044, Victoria,Australia.

Volume 12, No. 93, November/December, 1991 page 7

KHö [òT [üNgøy xıa, cfl mÈt c‰ gæi løm {Ày tÎ

cho mÈt c»p vÔ chÊng giÀu cfl. C‰ gæithıÏng bfi hai vÔ chÊng {Âi x¯ tøn tŸ. Nøngph¿i løm viŸc c˙c nh„c ngøy vø {‘m nhıngkh‰ng {ıÔc √n {Ày {Ú. NıÎc da cÚa c‰ trÌn‘n xÒ x¤, m»t døi ra vø th…n h¤nh c‡ng l¬i v¤ph¿i gænh væc {Ê n»ng.

MÈt h‰m, {‰i vÔ chÊng giÀu tÁ chˆc√n m˜ng tuÁi th„. H„ mÏi nhi÷u b¬n b– tÎid˙ tiŸc. Khæch {ıÔc {¡i √n uÂng ‘ ch÷, ch‹tr˜ c‰ tÎ gæi h‰m `y lø ph¿i løm viŸc v`t v¿hÍn. Nøng ph¿i xæch nıÎc t˜ gi’ng l‘n vøgænh v÷ nhø nhi÷u bŒn. Ngøy h‰m `y nƒnggay gƒt vø trÏi r`t nflng n˙c. C‰ gæi qabuÊn tÚi cho th…n phŒn m¤nh n‘n thÁn thˆckhflc.

T¤nh cÏ, cfl mÈt ‰ng l¡o {i qua vønh¤n th`y nøng khflc. ¢ng l¡o cÛng {angmŸt {uÂi. ¢ng {ıa tay run run quœt mÊ h‰itr‘n khu‰n m»t giø nua cÚa m¤nh. Th`y th’c‰ gæi cho ‰ng mÈt ⁄t nıÎc trong thÒng, rÊivÈi v¡ gænh {‰i thÒng {Ày nıÎc tr‘n vai v÷nhø.

Nh˘ng ngøy k’ ti’p, c‰ gæi vÕn lømc‰ng viŸc høng ngøy cÚa m¤nh. NøngthıÏng g»p ‰ng l¡o khi nøng ra gi’ng nıÎc.LÀn nøo nøng cÛng cho ‰ng mÈt ⁄t nıÎc.¢ng l¡o ch…n thønh cæm Ín c‰ gæi, vø ⁄t h‰msau, nøng l¬i cho ‰ng ⁄t cÍm.

MÈt h‰m, ‰ng l¡o h·i nøng:"T¬i sao con lu‰n lu‰n cfl v— buÊn

khÁ vŒy?"C‰ gæi kh‰ng tr¿ lÏi. ¢ng h·i ti’p:"T¬i sao h‰m trıÎc con khflc?"C‰ gæi thıa:"Con c‡n tr— tuÁi mø tr‰ng {¡ giø

nua, x`u x⁄. Con kh‰ng cfl b¬n b–, th…nquy’n vø cÛng ch∆ng cfl tıÍng lai. [Ïi conch‹ cfl løm lÙng n»ng nh„c mø th‰i."

"Th‰i con {˜ng khflc n˘a," ‰ng l¡onfli. "Ta lø [ˆc PhŒt gi¿ d¬ng {◊ th¯ l‡ngngıÏi. Ta bi’t con lø mÈt c‰ gæi r`t tÂt vø t¯t’. Ta s“ cho con {ıÔc sung sıÎng."

¢ng l¡o li÷n b¿o c‰ gæi {i xuÂngsuÂi tƒm vø hæi nh˘ng {fla hoa Ì quanh {fl.

C‰ gæi løm theo lÏi ‰ng l¡o, vø nøngch‹ hæi nh˘ng {fla hoa mÀu trƒng. Khi hæixong, c‰ gæi r`t {Ëi ng¬c nhi‘n th`y løn dam¤nh trÌ n‘n mfin møng trƒng tr—o vø m»tmøy mÍn mÌn ra. Tr‰ng nøng khæc h∆n lctrıÎc.

B…y giÏ nøng r`t xinh. Ngay c¿ bÈquÀn æo cÛ nøng {ang m»c cÛng trÌ thønhmÎi, {”p. Nøng r`t sung sıÎng b–n vÈi v¡trÌ v÷ nhø.

Tho¬t ti‘n, {‰i vÔ chÊng tıÌngm¤nh hoa mƒt khi th`y mÈt c‰ gæi {”p gænhnıÎc cho h„. Nhıng rÊi nøng gi¿i th⁄ch cho

hai ngıÏi nghe s˙ viŸc {¡ xÃy ra.Ch∆ng nfli mÈt lÏi vÎi c‰ gæi,

c»p vÔ chÊng giø ch¬y {’n chË c‰ gæi {¡g»p ‰ng l¡o. H„ mang theo mÈt mi’ngthfit lÎn thŒt ngon vø mÈt b¤nh rıÔu.¢ng l¡o run rÃy vÕn c‡n {`y. C»p vÔchÊng l¬i gÀn ‰ng giø vø nfli:

"Xin mÏi cÙ dÒng thfit vø nhƒmrıÔu ngon nøy, xong xin cÙ ch‹ chochng con løm cæch nøo {◊ {ıÔc tr— l¬i."

¢ng l¡o b¿o h„ xuÂng suÂi bÍilÈi vø hæi nh˘ng {fla hoa mø h„ th⁄ch rÊis“ th`y s˙ huy÷n diŸu.

C»p vÔ chÊng bÍi lÈi h√ng saydıÎi suÂi vø ch‹ ch„n hæi nh˘ng {fla hoamÀu {·, v¤ h„ ngh› r≈ng mÀu {· tıÔngtrıng cho s˙ may mƒn vø sinh l˙c.

Hai ngıÏi chıa l‘n kh·i suÂi th¤s˙ huy÷n diŸu {¡ xÃy ra: H„ bËng th`yngˆa ngæy khƒp m¤nh vø bƒt {Àu g¡i. H„g¡i tÎi {…u th¤ l‰ng m„c tÎi {fl. Da h„nh√n nhm l¬i hÍn bao giÏ h’t vø tr‰ngr`t th¿m thıÍng.

H„ kh‰ng {ıÔc tr— hÍn mø l¬ikh‰ng nfli {ıÔc n˘a vø hfla thønh kh‹.C»p vÔ chÊng r`t kinh hoøng vø muÂngi’t ‰ng l¡o. Nhıng lc `y ‰ng l¡o {¡bi’n m`t.

V¤ vŒy h„ ch¬y nhanh v÷ nhø vøphflng nhanh vøo trong, {Ùng ng¡ {Ê{¬c lung tung. C‰ gæi ho¿ng sÔ khi th`ykh‹, n‘n k‘u cˆu Àm ›. D…n løng ch¬y{’n {uÁi hai con kh‹ {i. Kh‰ng ai bi’t{ıÔc chuyŸn xÃy {’n cho {‰i vÔ chÊnggiø.

[‘m nøy qua {‘m khæc, hai conkh‹ trÌ v÷ nhø nhıng c‰ gæi {¡ {flngch»t cæc c¯a ra vøo vø cæc c¯a sÁ. Haicon kh‹ r‘n r‹, {u m¤nh tr‘n cæc cænh c¯asÁ. Chng lƒc c¯a thŒt m¬nh vø d…n løngnghe ti’ng k‘u la cÚa chng. H„ li÷nxæch dao, gŒy tÎi {◊ {uÁi chng. Hai conkh‹ sÔ bfi gi’t {ønh b· ch¬y. D…n løngb¿o c‰ gæi {Ât mÈt {Âng l¯a b‘n ngoøinhø {◊ kh‹ sÔ kh‰ng tÎi.

Khuya {‘m `y, hai con kh‹ trÌl¬i. Chng ph¿i nhÃy qua {Âng l¯a {◊vøo nhø. V¤ th’ {⁄t cÚa chng bfi {Ât chæyxœm. T˜ {fl, chng {ønh ph¿i rt vøor˜ng s…u vÎi cæi {⁄t bfi chæy {·.

Trong lc `y, c‰ gæi ngøy {‘mtr‰ng {Ôi {‰i vÔ chÊng giø trÌ v÷. D›nhi‘n, h„ kh‰ng bao giÏ trÌ l¬i vø cuÂicÒng c‰ gæi hıÌng tr„n gia tøi lÎn cÚah„.

page 8 Context: Southeast Asians in California

This is one chapter from abook by Huynh QuangNhuong, The Land ILost: Adventures of aBoy in Vietnam (NewYork: Harper & Row,1982; Harper Trophyedition, 1986). It isn’tfinished. How might it befinished? What would the“moral” of the story be?How is this story differentfrom European orAmerican stories? (Lookfor the parts that seem“strange”—that’s a clueto the differences.)

The next day a friend of my family’s who like teavery much asked if he could have one of the capturedmonkeys to use to pick tea leaves in the mountains forhim. Because of the cooler temperatures, tea grown onmountaintops is much better than tea grown at thefoot of the mountains. My father said yes.

Our friend began training the monkey by feedingit a mixture of water and opium residue everyevening. After one week the monkey became ad-dicted. Then he took it into the mountains.

At first our friend had to climb tot he top of themountain each day with the monkey to show it howto tell tea leaves apart from other leaves by smellingthem, and then how to pick the leaves and put theminto a light basket attached to its back. In the mean-time, the monkey kept drinking the opiated waterevery night when it got back to its master’s home.

After a week the monkey knew its job exactly.Our friend set it free in the morning, and in theevening it brought home a basketful of tea leaves.Some days the monkey did not pick enough tealeaves, and on those days our friend did not allow itto drink the special water. The next day the monkeywould do a better job.

Since our friend could not drink all the tea hismonkey picked, he sold some of it. He made quite abit of money by doing so. If someone criticized him,he would say, “It is better to be an addicted monkeythan a chicken beheaded and eaten!”

My father decided to teach one of the newly cap-tured monkeys how to hunt squirrels. Anyone whoowns coconut groves knows that squirrels are themost destructive animals. Of course some young co-conuts were always lost to giant bats and rats, butwhen the coconuts that escaped damage became ripeand were ready for market, the squirrels would come.They would eat through the coconut shells with theirsharp teeth, drink all the milk, eat the coconut meat,and then relax inside the shells, which made verycomfortable nests.

Squirrel hunting required a very well-trainedmonkey, a dog, and hunters with sling-shots. Huntersshot at squirrels with their sling-shots. They werehappy if they could hit one and slow it down, buttheir main purpose was to tire out the squirrel by con-stantly harassing it until it would hide on top of acoconut tree. Then the hunters would send the mon-key up the tree to catch the tired squirrel and throw itdown to the dog below. The owners of the coconutgroves gave the hunters for each squirrel and thenhung the dead squirrels on the coconut trees, hopingto scare away other squirrels.

In order to train his new monkey how to huntsquirrels, my father organized a special hunt andbrought the new monkey along with him.

Our family had a small coconut grove near theedge of the jungle and my father trained a monkey topick coconuts for him. But it took my father quite awhile to train our monkey for the job.

One day a peddler from the lowlands stopped byour house to show my father his goods. Since myfather was very proud of our monkey, he showed itto the peddler. When the peddler heard that my fa-ther had taken several months to train our monkeyhe told us that he wouldn't need that much time totrain not only one, but even a bunch of monkeys todifferent useful tasks.

My father was very interested in what the ped-dler said and invited him to stay with us overnight sothat he could show us how to train a monkey quickly.

Early the next morning the peddler, my fatherand a few of his friends, my cousin, and I went to theriverbank near a big tree that had branches hangingover the water. We hid ourselves carefully andwaited for the monkeys to come to the river for theirmorning drink.

Monkeys never come right down to the river be-cause of the mud. Instead they use a special tech-nique to reach the water. The first monkey hangsonto a branch over the water with one hand while theother hand holds the hand of a second monkey. Thesecond monkey holds the hand of a third monkeyand so on until one of the hanging chain of monkeysis close enough to the water to drink. The rest of themonkeys drink by changing positions on the chain.

That morning the level of the water in the riverwas quite low. Fifteen monkeys were needed to forma complete chain. A friend of my father’s shot thetopmost monkey, and the rest of the chain fell in thewater. Since monkeys cannot swim well, we caughtall fourteen, tied their hands behind their backs, andmarched them home like prisoners of war.

When we reached home, the peddler chose onemonkey that looked very mean and seemed to be theleader of the group. Then he lined up the others infront of the mean-looking one. Next he tried to teachthe mean-looking monkey how to use a spoon to eatrice. He repeated the process about ten times, but thesullen monkey refused to learn. So the peddler askedfor a knife and cut the head off the stubborn monkeyin front of the others.

The other monkeys trembled and remained ex-tremely quiet. Then when the peddler handed each ofthem a spoon and a bowl of rice, they all used thespoons and ate the rice properly.

During the rest of the day the peddler quicklytaught them to draw water from the well with abucket, to pick up trash and carry it to the dump, andso on. Sometimes the monkeys were slow to learnsomething new or became unruly; but when the ped-dler showed them the knife, the all became orderlyand learning proceeded in a proper way.

What Can You Do With a Monkey?

Volume 12, No. 93, November/December, 1991 page 9

A preliminary study of Yao shifting cultiva-tion (Hu Qiwang)

The relevance of ecology and/or economy forthe study of Yao religion (Peter Kandre)

A simple explanation of Taoism among theYao of the One Hundred Thousand Mounts(Zhang Youjuan)

The folksongs, dance, and culture of the Yaonationality (James Standifer)

The metrical structure of Yiu Mien secularsongs (Herbert Purnell)

Myths and legends of the Lian Nan Ba PaiYao (Xu Wenqing)

Study of the Pai Yao dresses and ornaments(Li Xiaowen)

The Yao in China today (Tan Hui)Social change in the Lian Nan Autonomous

Country, Guangdong: An analysis based onpopulation structure (Liao Baoyun)

Social change in the Lian Nan Yao area (LaiCaiqing)

Survey of the Yao studies in China (1949-84)(Liu Yaoquan and Hu Quwang

The first French publication on the Yao(Georges Condimas)

Yao culture and some other related problems(Jacques Lemoines)

Ordering information:The International Association for Yao Studies, c/oDept of Anthropology , New Asia College, ChineseUniversity of Hong Kong, Shatin, N.T. Hong Kong.

The Yao of South China:Recent InternationalStudiesJacques Lemoine & Chiao Chien. Paris: Pangu,Editions de l’A.F.E.Y., with the French NationalCentre of Scientific Research, 1991.

Chapters include:50 years’ investigation in the Yao Mountains

(Fei Xiaotong)Divisions between Yao and Miao (G. Downer)Yao dialectology (Pan Chengqian)A comparison between Pai Yao and Guoshan

Yao dialects (Zee Yun-Yang)A preliminary study of King Ping’s charter

(Huang Yu)Some remarks on the “Yao documents” found

in Thailand and edited by Y. Shiratori (JaoTsung-I)

The ancient distribution of the Yao inGuangdong (Li Mo)

Distribution and origin of the Yao in Ru Yuan(Pan Caiwan)

Principles of Pai Yao kinship (Chiao Chien)A preliminary study of the endogamous

system of the Pai Yao in Lian Nan,Guangdong (Hsieh Jiann)

The family system and its ethos among theYunnan Yao (Song Enchang)

Hmong Tapestry:Voices from the Cloth

The Hmong-American Partnership, agroup in St. Paul, Minnesota, has pro-duced an original stage play, Hmong Tapes-try: Voices from the Cloth. The productionweaves past and present into a tapestry ofpersonal stories, history, music and tradi-tional folktales. The is the first-everHmong-written and Hmong-performedplay.

The August 1991 performance is nowavailable on a 67-minute video, and thegroup is developing a curriculum toaccompay the videotape. (Is the scriptavailable for other productions?)

Ordering info:Rental: $30; purchase: $70.Hmong American Partnershipc/o Jean Egbert450 N. Syndicate #35St. Paul, MN 55104(612) 642-9601

page 10 Context: Southeast Asians in California

Dropping OutTaken from CLUE Update, 9/30/91 and “DroppingOut of School: Issues Affecting Culturally, Ethnically,and Linguistically Distinct Groups” (Chavez et al.,Journal of Educational Issues of Minority Students).

The groups most affected by drop-outare Native Americans, Hispanics (PuertoRicans, Mexican Americans, Chicanos),African Americans, and Asian Americans(Filipino, Tagalog, Vietnamese, and PacificIslanders). African Americans tend to be-lieve that there is no economic benefitfrom continued education; Native Ameri-cans believe that education is superfluousto them, culturally or economically orboth; Hispanics find the linguistic chal-lenges daunting.

School-related factorsIrrelevant curriculum (Bluhm, 1966)Poor compliance with rules (poor grades,

truancy, suspension, expulsion) (Peng& Takai, 1983; Pallas, 1987)

Retention (Stephenson, 1985)Cultural differences (Bluhm, 1966; BIA,

1988)Low extracurricular participation

(Springstead, 1981)

Family-related factorsNumber of children in the family (BIA,

1988)Absence of a parentLack of reading material at home

(Steinberg, Blinde, Chan, 1984)Father’s socioeconomic level

(Rumberger, 1983)Family finances (BIA, 1988)

Personal factorsMarried or engaged or pregnantMilitary serviceOffered job and took it (Peng, 1983)Lower levels of abilityMeasures low on self-confidence and

socialabilityLack of aspirations (Rumberger, 1984)Limited English proficiency (Steinberg,

Blinde, Chan, 1984)

Peer-relatedFriends dropping out (Peng and Takai,

1983)

Joining GangsGreg Zavala of Stockton Unified SchoolDistrict, gives these risk factors as part ofhis Street Smart program:

Family factorsFamily history of gang membershipManagement problems—unclear and

inconsistent family rulesAlcohol or drug useSingle parent or living with grandparentsHigh stress levelsLow parental educational levelLow parental expectationsLimited English proficiencyPermissive truancy

Personal factorsFriends who are gang membersRebelliousness, aggressivenessFightingDrug useNegative interactions with police

School factorsAnti-social behavior in elementary

gradesPoor grades, compliance with assign-

ments, little responsibilityLow motivationLow esteemNo educational or occupational aspira-

tionsTruancyLow teacher expectationsInconsistent disciplineHome/school conflictLack of options

Community factorsHigh transiencyHigh crime rate in the neighborhoodLack of school/community activityDeprivation (poverty, poor conditions,

low-status occupations)Community disorganizationPoor surveillance of public areasEducational levelFew options for activity, recreation

RiskFactors

Volume 12, No. 93, November/December, 1991 page 11

Registration information will be out soon,but school districts may want to earmarkconference money for this right away.In addition to “cutting edge” workshops,panels, and demonstrations, this is an op-portunity to meet people from all over thecountry who are as interested in SoutheastAsians as you are! In working on the pro-gram planning this year, I am most im-pressed with the interest and follow-through of the young Vietamese, Cambo-dian, Hmong, Mien, and Khmu leaderswho have come forwardt}}}}à9an Francisco can feature this focus onthe youth leadership, and the challengesinherent in passing leadership from onegeneration to another, because of the num-ber of community colleges, colleges, anduniversities in the area.

What an opportunity to send SoutheastAsian youth leaders from every highschool in the state! What a network! Whatmentorship might develop!

The former leaders are also people in ourschool communities: here is an opportu-nity to use “parent education” and “train-ing” funds for getting adults into a settingwhere they, too, can be part of the process.Certainly every school with more than 20LEP youngsters—who are required stateregulation to have a bilingual advisorycommittee and to provide training for par-ent members (CCR item 12)—should con-sider this opportunity.

Registration will run around $100; the ho-tel room at the Airport Hilton will run $79per night (1 to 4 people), and now, withSouthwest commuter fares, travel shouldbe less than before.

Watch for registration information in Janu-ary or February!

NAFEA (National Association for the Edu-cation and Advancement of Cambodian, Lao-tian, and Vietnamese Americans) is a non-profit organization founded in 1979 as theNational Association for VietnameseAmerican Education. This association wasoriginally formed by a group of dedicatedand visionary Vietnamese educators livingin the United States. Its name waschanged to reflect more accurately itsstated goals for the education and ad-vancement of the Cambodians and Lao-tians, as well as the Vietnamese, now liv-ing in America.

NAFEA seeks to provide and promote:•quality education for Indochinese

American students.•advancement of the quality of life for

Indochinese Americans.•understanding of the diverse back-

grounds, languages, and cultures of theIndochinese.

•exchange of information among profes-sionals and community members.

•recognition of excellence in education,social services, community services,and civic involvement.

•networking of Indochinese profession-als and others working with Indochi-nese in the fields of education andhuman services.

National conference chair: Ngoan Le (Chicago)

Local conference chair: Vu Duc Vuong (SanFrancisco)

Program chair: Judy Lewis (Sacramento)

Cambodian studies chair: Thida Khus (Washington,D.C.)

Laotian studies chair:Tou Meksavanh (Portland)

Vietnamese studies chair: Chuong Hoang Chung(San Francisco)

Fundraising chair: Khamchong Luangpraseut(Santa Ana)

13th Annual ConferenceSan Francisco Airport Hilton

Sunday, April 5 –Tuesday, April 7, 1992

Leadership for the 1990’s: Visions and Actions1980 The Indochinese in

America:New Opportunities,Challenges and Directions(Rosslyn, VA)

1981 The Indochinese inAmerica:Their Needs, Expectationsand Contributions(Anaheim, CA)

1982 The Indochinese inAmerica:Role DefinitionandMainstreamingPerspectives(Houston, TX)

1983 Community Approaches tothe American Dreams(Vienna, VA)

1984 The Indochinese inAmerica:Education, Employmentand Social Advancement(Anaheim, CA)

1985 A Decade of IndochineseResettlement:Achievements, Concernsand Prospects(Chicago, IL)

1986 The Second Decade:Integration vs. CulturalIdentity (Palo Alto, CA)

1987 Looking Ahead:Strategies for Success(Rosslyn, VA)

1988 Towards QualityMainstreaming:Commitment, Flexibilityand Accountability(Anaheim, CA)

1989 The New Generation ofIndochinese Americans:Contributions, Conflictsand Challenges(Chicago, IL)

1990 The New Generation ofIndochinese Americans:Identity, Issues, Integrity(Portland, OR)

1991 Agenda for the Nineties:Participation, Progress,Pluralism(St. Petersburg, FL)

1992 Leadership for the 1990’s:Visions and Actions(San Francisco, CA)

Order FormCommunity

ResourceCenter

2460 Cordova Lane,Rancho Cordova Ca 95670,

916 635-6815

#S8801 Handbook for Teaching Hmong-Speaking Students Bliatout, Downing, Lewis, Yang,1988. $4.50 (carton discount for lots of 58: $3.50)

#S8802 Handbook for Teaching Khmer-Speaking Students Ouk, Huffman, Lewis, 1988. $5.50(carton discount for lots of 40: $4.50)

#S8903 Handbook for Teaching Lao-Speaking Students Luangpraseut, Lewis 1989. $5.50(carton discount for lots of 42: $4.50)

#S8904 Introduction to the Indochinese and their Cultures Chhim, Luangpraseut, Te, 1989.$9.00 (carton discount for lots of 32: $8.00)

#S8805 English-Hmong Bilingual Dictionary of School Terminology Cov Lus Mis Kuj Txhais uaLus Hmoob Huynh D Te, translated by Lue Vang, 1988 $2.00 (no carton price)

#S9006 Vietnamese Language Materials Sourcebook Huynh Dinh Te, 1990 $2.00(no carton discount)

Add California tax if applicable. For orders under $30.00 add 1.50 per copy shipping andhandling. For orders over $30.00, add 10% shipping/handlng. If you wish UPS for quantityorders, please request it.

#S9999 CONTEXT: Southeast Asians in California, annual subscription $10.00.

Make payable to Folsom Cordova USD/SEACRC—

Make payable to Refugee Educators’Network—

#R001 Lao Alphabet Poster $3.50#R002 Lao Primer $4.00#R003 Lao 1st Grade Reader $5.00#R004 Lao 2nd Grade Reader$5.50#R005 Lao 3rd Grade Reader $6.50#R006 Hmong Primer $4.00

Includes tax; $1.00 per item shipping/handling upto $30.00. Over $30.00, 10% s/h.

Non-profitBulk Rate

U.S. Postage PaidPermit No. 140

Folsom, CA

Context:Southeast Asians in Californiac/o Folsom Cordova USDTransitional English Programs Office125 East Bidwell StFolsom CA 95630

Make payable to Lue Vang,PO Box 423, Rancho CordovaCA 95741-0423.

Grandmother’s Path,Grandfather’s Way (Vang &Lewis, revised printing 1990)

$14.95, plus $2.00 shipping/handling and applicable CAtax. Wholesale price avail-able for buyers with resalepermit; call 916 635-6815 forinformation.

Refugee Educators’Network meetings:

September 19, 1991November 21, 1991

January 23, 1992February 20, 1992

May 21, 1992

Southeast Asia Education Faire ’92

March 21, 1992