The number of reported cases of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) is increasing disproportionately among minority groups in the United States. Asian refugees, the nations' fastest growing racial/ethnic minorities, are at relatively high risk of AIDS and HIV infection, and they presently constitute 4.2% of AIDS cases. The Hmong population, a group of highly traumatized refugees, is one of the ethnic Asian minority groups that resettled in Minnesota, after the Vietnam War. The purpose of the study is to suggest how to design a culturally sensitive preventative curriculum that would help reduce the risk of contracting HIV infection and AIDS among Hmong adolescents. This study focuses on two sets of questions, descriptive and interpretive. Interviews were conducted with a sample of 32 Hmong adolescents and 25 Hmong and non-Hmong elders. Study data were used to critique existing AIDS curricula to assess their suitability for Hmong adolescents. Findings of this study include: (1) As immigrants, Hmong adolescents differ from other teenagers. The tug-of-war between Hmong and American cultural values can lead the Hmong teenagers to hide their sexual problems out of a feeling of helplessness that is conducive to the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, especially AIDS. (2) Misconceptions, misunderstandings, and misinterpretations about AIDS are problems that raise Hmong adolescents' risk. (3) Hmong adolescents want to self-protect against AIDS by learning how to think, talk, listen, and teach about sexuality. (4) Hmong adolescents believe that through AIDs education, they can become culturally emancipated and be "true Americans." (5) Hmong adolescents are seriously in need of trusted sources of help. (6) Hmong adolescents want to learn about AIDS prevention in a small group, bilingual, and taught by a sensitive teacher. (7) Hmong elders perceive Hmong teenagers to be at risk of AIDS, risk factors they identify include poverty, overcrowded families, illiteracy, Hmong parents' inability to communicate with teenagers, and such social problems as teenage runaways, Hmong prostitution, Hmong men visiting American prostitutes, Hmong boys and girls joining gangs, Hmong teenagers' mixing with teenagers of other races, and the practice of having several sexual partners.