Overview

The mission of UHD is to build a disability justice movement within the Hmong community to create a future that is inclusive of Hmong people with disabilities. During the summer of 2019, a group of diverse Hmong individuals with disabilities from Washington and Minnesota who initially met online, gathered in St. Paul, Minnesota, to talk about their lived experiences. They realized that there was so much more to talk about and that more information, education and conversations are needed in the Hmong community about disability. They connected and formed partnerships with other Hmong disability community groups such as Hmong with Special Needs (HSN) and Supporting all Abilities Welcoming all Voices (SAWV). Through their shared visions of connecting and supporting one another to address the cultural and historical lived experiences that intersect their identities, they founded United Hmong with Disabilities (UHD). UHD aims to help to create and center Hmong people with disabilities in order to design their own lived experiences to lead the conversations into creating a broader movement, building bridges across disabilities, and building tools and sustainable methods. The three main objectives for UHD are to: 1) Address and dismantle ableism in the Hmong community. 2) Amplify the voices of Hmong people with disabilities. 3) Create awareness of issues faced by people with disabilities and promote inclusion. We envision our works and community engagements to include diverse topics such as: Advocacy and Disability Justice Education Build relationships, partnerships, and network Storytelling