Joint Colloquium on Korean Americans hosted by the James Joo-Jin Kim Center for Korean Studies and the Philip Jaisohn Memorial Foundation, co-sponsored by Perry World House, The University of Pennsylvania.  

New Jersey Congressman Andy Kim works across an array of legislative issues with important implications for democracy both at home and abroad. As a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Kim supported the visit of the Korean President in April 2023. He helped advance a resolution reaffirming the US relationship with South Korea and the safeguard it offers for peace and security in the Indo-Pacific region. In doing so, Kim drew from and highlighted his own Korean ancestry. 

Kim also works to set an example at home.  His efforts to clean up the capitol building after the January 6 insurgency became a touchstone for those looking to move past the violence and chaos that polarized the U.S. The suit Kim wore while picking up trash now features in the National Museum of American History’s exhibit documenting the impacts of that day on American democracy. As a Korean American in politics, his role as a congressman is even more important nowadays in the current situation of bias, discrimination, violence, and hate against Asian Americans. 

How does the work of a congressman protect local interests while also assuring U.S. leadership on the world stage? How has Kim’s Korean ancestry informed his actions and legislative agenda? What does it mean being a Korean American in politics? What can we do to fight bias, discrimination, violence and racism again Asian Americans? What would Congressman Kim say to young Asian Americans living in this time? Join us as Representative Andy Kim discusses these issues and many others.

Speaker

Congressman Andy Kim represents the Third Congressional District of New Jersey. Congressman Kim has dedicated his life to serving the country. He worked as a career public servant under both Democrats and Republicans, having served at USAID, the Pentagon, the State Department, the White House National Security Council, and in Afghanistan as an advisor to Generals Petraeus and Allen. 

In the House of Representatives, Congressman Kim is working on an agenda to bring this country together and strengthen its national and economic security. He supports strong measures that boost our economy by investing in small businesses and innovation, creating fairness and opportunities for working families, and honoring America's promises to military families and veterans. Congressman Kim and his wife are currently raising two little boys down the street from where he grew up. 

Moderator

Hyunjoon Park is Korea Foundation Professor of Sociology and Director of the James Joo-Jin Kim Center for Korean Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. He received his Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2005. Park is interested in family and social stratification in cross-national comparative perspective, focusing on South Korea and other East Asian societies. In recent years, he has studied changes in marriage, divorce, and living arrangements as well as consequences of demographic and economic trends for education, well-being, and socioeconomic outcomes of children, adolescents, and young adults in Korea. He is the author of the book, Re-Evaluating Education in Japan and Korea: De-mystifying Stereotypes; and the book Diversity and the Transition to Adulthood in America, coauthored with Phoebe Ho and Grace Kao, among other titles.