Korean Peace Day and DEEP report back

I also attended this event. For the first portion of the evening, an NYU professor gave a brief history about political relations between the Republic of North Korea and the United States. This is very important to understanding how the current situation is between the two world powers. The majority of what the professor spoke about was the need for political activism and leadership within the Korean community. the most recent incident occurred earlier this year in April when North Korea sent "something" into space. This is where the idea of perspectives came in. The Obama administration referred to it as a nuclear weapon while the North Koreans called it a satellite, or "galaxy 2." After this incident, Obama called for a general international response condemning North Korea for their violent actions. Furthermore, Obama called for a "world without nuclear weapons." After this negative response from the rest of the world powers, North Korea was more concerned about politics and their relationship with other countries than the potential consequences for sending a "rocket" into space.

The second most recent event was when North Korea detonated a nuclear bomb as a test. Obama announced that his administration tried to "extend a hand" to discuss their political relations but this was now a clear threat. Furthermore, the North Korean government felt attacked by the Obama administration's aggressiveness and this worsened the political relations between the two. Shortly after, the incident with the two American journalists occurred and it was only until former President Bill Clinton became involved that the issue was resolved. Senator Hillary Clinton was also involved, as she expressed hope for "amnesty through the North Korean system" would solve this problem. North Korea felt that showed acknowledgment of their authority.

These events are prevalent in the news. It is not as obvious to make a connection between the current events and how they might affect our students. But the situation in North Korea may be hurtful to Korean-Americans living here. Just like after 9/11, some Muslim-Americans felt persecuted against because of how the world viewed their religion, the same can be applied here. The political choices made by North Korea has nothing to do with Korean-Americans. Perhaps some of them support that actions of that government and that is completely their choice. However, others may feel that the political actions depict their people in a negative way. This could lead to Korean-American students in our potential classes to feel ashamed about their heritage for fear of being judged. The administration of our country is against the actions taken by that of the North Korean government and that creates a very real conflict of interest for Koreans living here. It is important for us as teachers to be aware of the cultures represented in our classroom community but also how those cultures are represented and/or depicted in the news. I learned a great deal about this organization: their goal was to spread a message of peace and encourage political activism for the younger Korean genereations.