April is Asian Heritage Month, and the Korean Undergraduate Leaders of A&M are spreading awareness of its culture and information about the philanthropy to the Texas A&M community.
Angela Kim, founder of the organization, said she started KULA in 2008, when she realized how underrepresented Korean Americans were at A&M.
“I saw how large the undergraduate Korean American population was, and thought it was time that we needed an organization to ourselves,” Kim said.
Heeseon Choe, a junior biology major, presents a cultural lesson at every meeting.
“Many Korean Americans feel detached from their homeland, so KULA makes sure that we bring awareness and acceptance to our unique customs and culture,” Choe said.
Cultural lessons include the appropriate methods to wearing the traditional clothing, special days of the year and continuing the opinions of North Korea and South Korea.
KULA’s philanthropy is LiNK, Liberty in North Korea. “When people ask if there is a difference between North and South Korea, most Koreans say there is no difference,” Choe said.
“The war tore our country apart and the North is now communist, which we free Koreans feel that we need to help liberate,” said Sora Lee, a sophomore psychology major.
LiNK is a nonprofit organization that provides protective services to North Korean refugees.
“When people escape North Korea, they do not have automatic freedom,” Lee said.
When refugees escape the country, most flee to China, where they work as prostitutes or in degrading manual labor to make pennies a day. LiNK secures homes and job opportunities for refugees and aids them in the transition to the modern world.
KULA’s contribution to LiNK includes monetary aid to the safe camps around the North Korean border where LiNK volunteers save refugees from being captured by the Chinese or North Korean government.
“We are also trying to spread awareness of the atrocious acts in North Korea through presentations,” said Kim, who hosted a LiNK traveling group that showed a documentary of the acts occurring in North Korea.
KULA wants other Korean Aggies to know they are major contributors to the A&M community.
“When I first came to A&M, I barely knew any other Koreans and I felt alone,” Choe said. “Now, with KULA, I have met so many enthusiastic people that share my culture and way of life.”
Reaching out to other cultures is an ultimate goal for Kim.
“KULA is just starting up, but I feel that already people have a great respect for Korean Americans and our amazing culture,” Kim said.
Event infoFor more on the Korean Undergraduate Leaders of A&M and LiNK, e-mail [email protected].