Burmese Refugees in Fort Wayne

I used to hang out with a group of Burmese refugees while back in Fort Wayne. I had met Win Moe, who was just a great guy, while taking an Astronomy course at IPFW and he introduced me to his group of friends. All of them had fought a guerrilla campaign against the Burmese military regime and were a fascinating bunch to talk to. And to drink with--boy, could they drink! Before meeting these guys, I had studied Aung San Suu Kyi, who is the spokeswoman for Burmese democracy (and has been under house arrest for over a decade because of it), so I was somewhat familiar with the country's recent history. But Win Moe and his friends introduced me to their culture, as well as the Burmese community in Fort Wayne--a city that has the largest population of Burmese refugees. And since the recent pro-democracy protests in Burma have begun, the news is taking note of the community in Fort Wayne, an example of which is this report on NPR. Let's hope that this protest gets further than the last one . . . .