KAC held the 27th Annual National College Leadership Conference (NCLC) June 21 through 23 at Mount Kare Retreat Center in Wrightwood, Calif. The college students who were fortunate enough to join the NCLC had the opportunity to meet and listen to many inspiring and successful Korean Americans.

 

This year’s special guest speakers included:

 

• Phillip Cuddy, director of the Dosan Memorial Foundation

• Dr. Chaibong Hahm, director of the Korean Studies Institute at USC

• Alexander Kim, deputy to Governor Arnold Schwarzenneger

•Jeanine Kim, media strategist specializing in the Asian American market

• Paul Kim, better known as “PK” of ProKreation and Kollaboration

• Dr. Leslie Moe-Kaiser, State Farm Public Affairs Corporate Relations Manager, APIA community    

• Lt. Col. Brian Yoo, second-highest ranking KA officer in the USAF

• Grace Yoo, executive director of KAC-LA

 

The conference objectives were to:

- Build awareness and knowledge of current and past issues confronting the Korean American community

- Raise appreciation and understanding of Korean American cultural identity and roots

- Develop leadership skills, a sense of civic responsibility, and establish a solid foundation for future activism

- Strengthen community participation and effective involvement in civic, legislative and community affairs

These objectives were definitively met and we eagerly await the surge of Korean American activism that will most assuredly arise from this group of NCLCers. To date, the NCLC has trained nearly 850 young adults from more than 40 national and international universities.

We look forward to next year’s NCLC and will prepare another excellent opportunity for Korean American college students. Perhaps, in the future, a Korean American activism conference geared towards professionals can be planned as well.

What about after college?

The request from post-college Korean Americans for a leadership, skills development course geared for those in their late 20s to early 40s was requested by a number of folks. If you are someone who would be interested in such a conference, please send us an e-mail at professionals@kacla.org and depending on the response, we will consider a conference geared for young professionals.

 

 

 

 

 Comfort Women Issue Update

 

> By Grace Yoo

 

House Resolution 121 is a resolution calling for the Japanese government to formally apologize for its role in the forced subjugation of young women of Asian countries, sometimes so young that they were mere children, into sex slavery during the World War II era. The bulk of these “comfort women” were from Korea.

Congressman Tom Lantos, chair of the Foreign Relations Committee spoke to members of the HR 121 Coalition and the Korean American community in Los Angeles regarding on June 16. Congressman Lantos believes that his committee will unanimously approve to support HR 121 and that they will be successful in having the full house pass the resolution. Congressman Lantos anticipates bringing the resolution up for vote on June 26.