摘要
Historical political movements and wars forced the Tai Lue to escape from their hometown and finally, they migrated to the United States. There are too many sorrowful stories of their escaping from China to Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, and new-coming to the USA. The skills for work, working environments and working time are all different from what they had done in Asia. They realize that it is important for them to preserve their traditional culture in the USA. One the one hand, keeping their traditional culture could make them safe, and on the other hand, make them happy and help them reduce homesickness. Theravada Buddhism is their main traditional culture. When the Tai Lue move to the USA, they have to negotiate the mainstream culture and modify their behaviors in order to maintain their traditions as much as possible. The US circumstances provide Tai Lue Americans with both negatives and positives for preserving their traditions. The cultural freedom in the USA provides the Tai Lue the freedom to maintain their traditional culture but some aspects also conflict with American laws and regulations. American Western culture also influences their traditions. Globalization not only provides the Tai Lue traditional culture with possible and similar conditions to extend in the USA, but also helps Tai Lue Americans to do their contributions to the traditions in their motherland. The identity of the Tai Lue is misunderstood as the Lao by the public. Tai Lue Americans are still moving and working for their lives, and they are contemporarily keeping their tradition in the USA. However, it will be hard for Tai Lue American elders to transfer the traditions to their next generation.
