The etymology of compassion is Latin, meaning co-suffering.. Compassion involves feeling for another and is a precursor to empathy, the feeling as another capacity for better person centered acts of active compassion, in common parlance active compassion is the desire to alleviate another's suffering.
The Hmong people are in the U.S. as victims of US policies in the Vietnam War and then victims of persecution by Laos after the war. There are others who supported the U.S. but are still in Asia, facing persecution for their support of America. Many escaped to Thailand, but many of them have been forced back to Laos.
The Hmong language has a long and detailed history coming from a people in southern China that has existed for almost two thousand years. This rich language still remains today spoken by a wide range of people coming from this area and culture historically.