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Escape to freedom - Laotian refugee now works at HCC MEG BARONE, Correspondent BRIDGEPORT — A study of Laotian history records the names of several politically prominent people from the Ratanavong family. Their patriotic service brings great pride to Susan Ratanavong, her parents and four siblings. But after the end of the Vietnam War in 1975, when Southeast Asia was in turmoil, communists overthrew the government of Laos, threatening the safety of the Ratanavongs. Influential and educated men, including her father, Nou eng Ratanavong, were imprisoned. "We heard all these horrible stories that they were tortured, they died or were murdered. We didn't see my father for five years," said Ratanavong, 36, now a Trumbull resident. Ratanavong was only 8 years old in 1979 when her mother, Chinnary Ratanavong, and siblings made their first attempt to escape their homeland through the jungle. "My mother said if we stay here we're going to die," said Ratanavong, assistant director of admissions and part-time instructor at Housatonic Community College. Ratanavong sometimes shares with her students stories of her family's courageous bid for freedom, life in a Thai refugee camp and struggle for success in the United States. Her message to them, "Don't give up, even with the culture and language barriers. If I can do it, you can do it," said Ratanavong, the adviser for the college's International Festival and the student Multi-Cultural Club. That optimism was hard to muster in the jungles of Laos where she saw things no child should. "You had to find an escape route that was close to the Mekong River that served as a border between Laos and Thailand. Some people made it there, some people died. If I close my eyes I can picture the vision of the jungle. You smelled the dead bodies of other people who had tried to escape. There were corpses. It was not pleasant," Ratanavong said. "It was a chaotic time in Laos. People wanted to leave, escape, because of the new government, which was communist. Laos is still a communist state now," she said. The stench of rotting flesh was difficult to escape. So were the communists. "On the first attempt we got caught. We heard these footsteps coming so we hid in this old hut or shack. Our family friends at that time had an infant. The baby was crying so we had to surrender," Ratanavong said. "We were put in jail for two weeks. They said, 'Next time you escape we'll kill you.' I remember I was in fear. They killed my dog, a black Labrador. They poisoned him. That's the last time I had a pet in the household. If they can kill my dog they can do anything to us. It was horrifying but my mother was a courageous woman. She said, 'We're not going to give up,' " Ratanavong said. A second bid for freedom, this time traveling only two at a time and several weeks apart, was successful. Ratanavong and her older sister Khong, then 13, posed as the children of a Thai fisherman. "We had to dress as Thai merchants. My older sister spoke Thai. Thai and Lao cultures are similar. That helped us to escape," she said. Conditions for the Ratanavongs didn't improve in Thailand, where they spent a year in a refugee camp. "That was terrible. A lot of children died each day. There were sanitary problems, sickness, like malaria. Some of the kids were kidnapped and put into prostitution. Sometimes supplies didn't get to the refugee camp. There was all this corruption," she said. Whatever indignities they suffered were worth it because it was at the camp they were reunited with their father, she said. He had escaped from a hospital. "They did torture him. He would get beaten up. They didn't feed him right. He was malnourished," she said. "When I saw my father for the first time I could not recognize him. My mother recognized him. I think the memories brought us back together," Ratanavong said. On April 15, 1980, the Ratanavong family arrived in Erie, Pa., for their shot at the American dream. "I remember that day. It was snowing. I had never seen snow in my entire life. Laos is a tropical country. I would see this white thing coming down that was cold and it hurt. We didn't know what it is. We said to ourselves, 'American god must be crazy.' That was kind of a culture shock," Ratanavong said. Their living conditions were also a stark contrast. The family that had a nice home, limo driver and caretaker in Laos struggled to make ends meet in their new country. The seven Ratanavongs lived in a one-bedroom apartment, and later in a garage. They didn't have a car and couldn't afford public transportation. And as the only Asian family in Erie, they faced discrimination. "We had rocks thrown at us and name-calling. They told us to go back home. My parents were crying," she said. Through it all they stayed positive. "We were somewhat unfortunate but we were blessed ... My parents had to work from the bottom, but they had their family and they had their dignity back. We didn't have anything but we were rich in our hearts," Ratanavong said. In 1986, they headed to Bridgeport where other relatives had settled and there were more Asians, more jobs and a Buddhist temple. "Bridgeport gave me opportunity," Ratanavong said. Myra Oliver, executive director of the International Institute, a local agency that helps immigrants settle in the U.S., said 2006 marks 30 years since the first Laotians began arriving in Bridgeport. "They've taken the American dream and ran with it. They've done very well," Oliver said. At one time there were as many as 5,000 Laotians in the area, but Oliver is unsure how many have remained. Ratanavong attended Bassick High School, graduated from Sacred Heart University with an undergraduate degree in psychology and from the University of Bridgeport with a graduate degree in education. She studied psychology because, "My true heart is helping people." For that, her students are grateful. "It's not like she had a nice life. But she made it. She's giving us hope," said Milica Videnovic, 24, of Bridgeport, who came to America from Serbia in 2003. "The good thing about her is she pushes us to get involved. She knows international students have a harder time. She makes us comfortable," said Yusuff Adbu, 19, of Bridgeport, who left his native Nigeria in 2003. "I'm amazed that someone who has been through so much can be so supportive, and no matter how busy she is she finds time to ask about our families," Adbu said. Ratanavong's family connections to the old government make it impossible to consider a return trip to Laos for fear of retribution. Many of Ratanavong's relatives held key government positions before the communist take-over. "My mother was a judge of district court in the capital of Laos and she was the first woman to hold a high position for appeals court," she said. "My paternal grandfather was an ambassador in Cambodia and Laos, and attorney general for Laos. His last position before he died was the king counsel under King Siavan Vatthana, the last king of Laos. My great uncle, Phomi Nosavan, was deputy prime minister of Laos and he was a general for the Laotian army," she said. Anson C. Smith, Public Relations Coordinator |
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