A group of Hmong Americans gathered outside of the Humanities building Thursday afternoon to protest statements made by UW-Madison history professor Alfred McCoy.

Demonstrators representing the Lao Human Rights Council bore signs and placards at the corner of Park and University Avenues, calling for McCoy to appear and apologize for his statements regarding Gen. Vang Pao, a Hmong leader during the Vietnam war.

McCoy told the Capital Times the findings of the research he performed in the region.

McCoy detailed Vang Pao’s role in the war and the drug trade in his 1991 book, “The Politics of Heroin: CIA Complicity in the Global Drug Trade.”

The protestors contend McCoy’s assertions regarding Pao’s involvement in drug trafficking are unfounded.

“We are here because professor McCoy has accused Gen. Vang Pao of being involved in the opium trade,” said Dr. Vang Pobzeb, executive director of the Lao Human Rights Council. “The qualifications of Professor McCoy need to be reviewed.”

Ronald Lee, a Hmong Vietnam veteran, said he feels Americans must show greater respect for the sacrifices of Hmong soldiers during the conflict.

“The Hmong soldiers rescued American pilots,” he said. “Forty thousand Hmong soldiers died in Vietnam fighting for the Americans.”

Pobzeb said the protestors will remain vigilant in their demands.

“We’re here to tell students, the UW System, the chancellors and the Board of Regents that McCoy must apologize,” he said. “We will be back again and again until he does.”

McCoy said he had done nothing wrong and would not apologize.

“I exercised my right of free speech. I think this is kind of an act of intimidation,” he said. “Anyone who purports to give an objective and critical account of Vang Pao’s leadership faces this kind of threat. I’m just glad it’s a peaceful demonstration. They can keep coming back; I have nothing to apologize for.”