I’m Taidam – not Thai

You may not of heard of the Taidam culture – but it’s a real thing, contrary to those who doubt me whenever I tell them what ethnicity I am; I’m Taidam and Chinese by the way. And no – Taidam and Thai are not the same.

To help you out here’s some brief history:

The Taidam people are known as the people without a country. Their country was Sip Song Chau Tai or in English 12 Tai Principalities but got colonized by the French in 1888. During World War II, they reassembled as Sip Hok Chau Tai or 16 Tai Principalities but it quickly got caught in between the war and the country became a battle ground. The country became over ruled yet again and the Taidam people were left country-less.

Many fled to Vientiane, Laos; this is where my dad’s family went. 20 years after getting resettled in Laos, communists took over Laos in 1975. The Taidam then went to Thailand to seek refuge at the refugee camps.

Governor Robert D. Ray gave the Taidam people hope and freedom when he welcomed the Taidam refugees to the state of Iowa in 1975. 2015 marked 40 years since they have been in the United States. My family and many other refugee families are forever grateful for Governor Ray.

Taidam Flag

Taidam Community in Des Moines

Since more than 80% of the Taidam people came to Iowa, they all came together and assembled Tai Village in Des Moines for the Taidam Community. Fun fact: My dad is one of the founding members.

Since my dad was a member, growing up I remember always dreading going to Tai Village meetings with my parents because it was basically all adults and I went everywhere with my parents. Occasionally a few of my cousins would come but that was rare.

Keeping the culture alive

The Tai Village committee puts together a Taidam New Year celebration to ring in the new year with the whole Taidam community as well as a tent at the CelebrAsian Festival in May. They also have a Tai Village Festival held on labor day weekend.

Taidam New Year was probably one of my favorite holidays growing up, it still is. I got to see lots of cousins I hadn’t seen in awhile. We would always go up to the gongs and try to follow along with whatever song is playing, we usually didn’t to well.  This is also the day where I can eat all the traditional Tai food that I’ve been deprived from all year.

I danced the traditional Taidam dance at Tai New Year, CelebrAsian Festival and Tai Village Festival for a few years when i was in middle school with a few of my cousins. It was great to learn more about my culture. I only danced for 3 years because living an hour away from Des Moines and having to drive to practice every week sucked.

My cousins and I wore/still wear the traditional outfits to Tai New Year even though we don’t dance anymore. It’s a way for us to connect to our roots and really appreciate where our parents come from.

Tai Village Festival 2010

Family

Family is so important to the Taidam community because like my dad, his siblings and parents, all they had when they first came to the United States was each other. They left behind everything and had to start from scratch. They leaned on each other for support.

My parents never really let me hang out with friends outside of school. It’s not like they forbid to see them but there was always a family event or birthday to go to on the weekends. Family events always took precedence over friends.

I got used to it as I grew older. I think it also helped me understand the importance of family time. Since I have such a huge family, it was easy to not be mad at the fact that I wasn’t with friends. I can honestly say that my cousins are my best friends.

Growing up with them and being around them all the time was great because we knew exactly what our family was like and we could relate to each other.

Grandparents with half the grandchildren

Growing up Taidam helped me appreciate and embrace my culture more. I’m proud to be Taidam.