Lormong Lo
Encyclopedia
Lormong Lo is the first Hmong
American
to be appointed to a city council
in the U.S, in 1994, to manage the largest metropolitan city
(Omaha
--480,000 people) of a state like Nebraska
. He was re-elected in June 1997 to a second full-term from 1997 until June 2001.
In June 1997, Lo is the first Hmong ever to become president of a city council in the U.S., Omaha City Council
, who presided over the official meetings of the council. He is the first to ever hold the title of Acting Mayor
of the City of Omaha starting in June 1997.
Lo was the first Hmong American to ever become elected President of the Asian Pacific American Municipal Officials (APAMO) by his APAMO colleagues, a constituency group of the National League of Cities
, in Washington, D.C.
. He was selected to be Vice-Chair of both the Economic Development Committee and the Program Committee of NLC. In these positions, he helped write municipal policies, e.g., housing and economic development policies for the 15,000 cities in the United States and was responsible for its conference planning. He often lobbied the U.S. Congress and White House officials on policies of interest to the cities, especially credit, economic, housing and immigration policies.
In 1998, he was appointed by Governor of Nebraska
Ben Nelson
and served as a member of the Nebraska Public Employee Retirement System, where he oversees the state's $5 billion retirement assets. He is the first Hmong American official to be welcome in Beijing
by the Vice-Premier of China
. In 1988-89, Councilman Lo made official visits to China, Korea
, Japan
, Thailand
, and Taiwan
-- where he met with foreign ministers, dealing with trade issues and promotions and the Prime Minister of Thailand, where thanked the Thai people
, Thai government and Thai monarchy for providing humanitarian support to the Hmong and Indochinese refugees in Thailand for a decade, until they are resettled into third countries, particularly the U.S., Canada
, France
and Australia
.
Mr. Lo is one of the first Hmong born in Laos
to go back to hold face to face
meetings with the cabinet ministers
of the Lao communist government concerning the alleged communist use of chemical warfare
against the Hmong people and its continuing attacks on the Hmong villages in Northern Laos, particularly at Muang Mok. Through such direct talks, Laos has gradually opened the door to visitors who were natives of Laos.
He attended gatherings at the White House
during the Ronald Reagan
and George H. W. Bush
administrations, while he discussed municipal policies with White House officials as leader of APAMO during the Bill Clinton
administration.
On July 18, 2011, Lormong was feeling sick and checked into a hospital near his home in Arkansas. He later returned home and died in his sleep the following day. He was 52 years old. He is survived by his wife and five children.
Hmong people
The Hmong , are an Asian ethnic group from the mountainous regions of China, Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand. Hmong are also one of the sub-groups of the Miao ethnicity in southern China...
American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to be appointed to a city council
Local government in the United States
Local government in the United States is generally structured in accordance with the laws of the various individual states. Typically each state has at least two separate tiers: counties and municipalities. Some states have their counties divided into townships...
in the U.S, in 1994, to manage the largest metropolitan city
Metropolis
A metropolis is a very large city or urban area which is a significant economic, political and cultural center for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections and communications...
(Omaha
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha is the largest city in the state of Nebraska, United States, and is the county seat of Douglas County. It is located in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about 20 miles north of the mouth of the Platte River...
--480,000 people) of a state like Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
. He was re-elected in June 1997 to a second full-term from 1997 until June 2001.
In June 1997, Lo is the first Hmong ever to become president of a city council in the U.S., Omaha City Council
Omaha City Council
The City Council of Omaha, Nebraska is elected every four years on a nonpartisan basis. The next election will occur in 2009. Omaha has a strong mayor form of government. Members are elected by district...
, who presided over the official meetings of the council. He is the first to ever hold the title of Acting Mayor
Acting Mayor
Acting mayor is a temporary office created by the charter of some municipal governments.-History:In many cities and towns, the charter or some similar fundamental document provides that in the event of the death, resignation, or removal from office of the mayor, another official will lead the...
of the City of Omaha starting in June 1997.
Lo was the first Hmong American to ever become elected President of the Asian Pacific American Municipal Officials (APAMO) by his APAMO colleagues, a constituency group of the National League of Cities
National League of Cities
The National League of Cities is an American advocacy organization representing 19,000 cities, towns, and villages, and encompassing 49 state municipal leagues....
, in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
. He was selected to be Vice-Chair of both the Economic Development Committee and the Program Committee of NLC. In these positions, he helped write municipal policies, e.g., housing and economic development policies for the 15,000 cities in the United States and was responsible for its conference planning. He often lobbied the U.S. Congress and White House officials on policies of interest to the cities, especially credit, economic, housing and immigration policies.
In 1998, he was appointed by Governor of Nebraska
Governor of Nebraska
The Governor of Nebraska holds the "supreme executive power" of the State of Nebraska as provided by the fourth article of the Nebraska Constitution. The current Governor is Dave Heineman, a Republican, who assumed office on January 20, 2005 upon the resignation of Mike Johanns . He won a full...
Ben Nelson
Ben Nelson
Earl Benjamin "Ben" Nelson is the senior U.S. Senator from Nebraska. He is a member of the Democratic Party and was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2000....
and served as a member of the Nebraska Public Employee Retirement System, where he oversees the state's $5 billion retirement assets. He is the first Hmong American official to be welcome in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
by the Vice-Premier of China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. In 1988-89, Councilman Lo made official visits to China, Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, and Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
-- where he met with foreign ministers, dealing with trade issues and promotions and the Prime Minister of Thailand, where thanked the Thai people
Thai people
The Thai people, or Siamese, are the main ethnic group of Thailand and are part of the larger Tai ethnolinguistic peoples found in Thailand and adjacent countries in Southeast Asia as well as southern China. Their language is the Thai language, which is classified as part of the Kradai family of...
, Thai government and Thai monarchy for providing humanitarian support to the Hmong and Indochinese refugees in Thailand for a decade, until they are resettled into third countries, particularly the U.S., Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
Mr. Lo is one of the first Hmong born in Laos
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
to go back to hold face to face
Real life
Real life is a term usually used to denote actual human life lived by real people in contrast with the lives of fictional or fantasy characters.-Usage online and in fiction:On the Internet, "real life" refers to life in the real world...
meetings with the cabinet ministers
Cabinet (government)
A Cabinet is a body of high ranking government officials, typically representing the executive branch. It can also sometimes be referred to as the Council of Ministers, an Executive Council, or an Executive Committee.- Overview :...
of the Lao communist government concerning the alleged communist use of chemical warfare
Chemical warfare
Chemical warfare involves using the toxic properties of chemical substances as weapons. This type of warfare is distinct from Nuclear warfare and Biological warfare, which together make up NBC, the military acronym for Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical...
against the Hmong people and its continuing attacks on the Hmong villages in Northern Laos, particularly at Muang Mok. Through such direct talks, Laos has gradually opened the door to visitors who were natives of Laos.
He attended gatherings at the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
during the Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
and George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
administrations, while he discussed municipal policies with White House officials as leader of APAMO during the Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
administration.
On July 18, 2011, Lormong was feeling sick and checked into a hospital near his home in Arkansas. He later returned home and died in his sleep the following day. He was 52 years old. He is survived by his wife and five children.
See also
- Government of Omaha, Nebraska