National Foundation Day celebrates the creation story that tells how Korea came into being.  Hangul Day celebrates the historic creation of Korea’s alphabet by King Sejong the Great.  Both celebrations give us windows into the richness of Korean tradition and culture.

I hope everyone had a great Chuseok (Hangawi) Holiday!
In Korea, to celebrate Chuseok, families gather around to eat Songpyeon (송편), and commemorate our ancestors with Jesa (제사). We remember those who are no longer with us during the holidays.

BY EUN BYOUL OH & SHARON STERN

For Chuseok, we eat a lot of food. A LOT OF FOOD.

We cook a lot of food, eat a lot of food, and have a lot of leftovers.

So, for this month in the Korean-American community, we brought some news about food!

And, a special note on the release of PBS Frontline Documentary South Korea's Adoption Reckoning.

For many Korean adoptees, traditional holidays like Chuseok hold a unique significance. They represent not only a cultural celebration but also an opportunity to connect with their heritage and identity in a meaningful way. This year's Chuseok was particularly poignant, given the recent  AP News article that exposed the troubling history of international adoption practices in South Korea, revealing systemic fraud and unethical conduct. Despite these revelations, Chuseok continues to serve as a reminder of adoptees' unique journeys and the diverse ways in which families are defined and experienced....

BY SHARON STERN

We thought it would be fun to share a Chuseok recipe with everyone this month.  It might seem like an intimidating thing to try to make Korean songpyeon, but they aren’t that hard to make!  

By Hannah Elliott
방탄소년단 DEEP CUTS

This month, we put together a collection of BTS Deep Cuts spanning their entire catalog. You won’t find any “Dynamite,” “FAKE LOVE,” or “DNA” here. If you are already a hardcore BTS fan, these songs, most likely, won’t surprise you. But it may be a nice trip down memory lane or remind you of a song or two that you may have forgotten about over the years.

BY SHARON STERN

This month’s new dramas feature a really wide variety of genres.  We have a pretty serious teen drama, a goofy cop comedy, a demon who takes over a judge, a woman juggling two personalities, a dog who communicates with a has-been actor, a family laundry that is laundering money and a second season of a drama that should have never been made in the first place.  There is never a dull moment in dramaland and this month is no exception!

BY JOSHUA KIM

This month we have a short fairy tale called The Golden Ax and the Silver Ax - 금도끼와 은도끼. 

In it, there are two woodcutters: Deokbo, the kind one, and Yunbo, the lazy one. One day, Deokbo goes to chop wood in the forest with his iron ax but accidentally drops it in a pond, crying out in sadness. In the form of an old man, a mountain god, Sanshinryeong, comes out of the pond holding a golden ax....

BY SHARON STERN

Last month we celebrated the talents of Korean athletes at the Paris 2024 Olympics.  This month we follow up with an equally amazing group of Korean athletes who participated in the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.  South Korea sent a total of 83 athletes – 46 men and 37 women – who competed in 17 different sports, to the Paralympics this year.  By the Closing Ceremony, South Korea had won a total of 30 medals (6 gold, 10 silver, 14 bronze), ranking 22^nd overall.  They won medals in Para Shooting, Boccia, Para Table Tennis, Para Badminton, Wheelchair Fencing and Para Taekwondo.

By SHARON STERN and EUN BYOUL OH

Disability in South Korea is a very complicated topic.  South Korea has, until recently, had a classification system for disabilities, completely dependent on medical evaluation and as a result, over-simplifying how social response is mandated, including exclusion of students in schools and access to education as well as access to employment.  The right to mobility as a basic human right, stated in documents such as the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights, has encountered cultural attitudinal challenges and therefore political challenges in South Korea.

BY SHARON STERN

We can’t and shouldn’t get through September without remembering the events of 9/11.  September 11, 2001 was a date in history that affected New York more than any other place in this country or the world.  Almost 3,000 people lost their lives and among them were 28 Koreans.  For those born after 9/11, the date may be more like a history lesson to remember.  For those of us that were alive, we will never be able to forget it.

By Eun Byoul Oh

August is always an exciting month for Korea—and we also had the Olympics this year.

Korea was liberated from Japan on August 15, 1945, after 35 years of brutal occupation. I remember one year someone asked me, “Eun, you are young, but why do you hold strong opinions on Japanese colonialism?” I was born in the 90s — I certainly grew up with Japanese Mangas and Nintendos. 

I dwelled on the question for a bit and came down to one conclusion: “Obviously, because I am Korean.” As we celebrate Korean culture, we thought it was appropriate for us to honor the Liberation of Korea and share the joy with our readers.

By Sharon Stern

South Korea is celebrating incredible success at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.  We want to join in the celebration and congratulate the South Korean athletes for their 32 medals.

And as we write this, the ethnic Korean high school baseball team in Japan has won Japan’s famous Koshien baseball tournament for the first time.  This is Japan’s equivalent to the U.S. World Series.  It is another reminder of the Korean diaspora in Japan and the lasting effects of Japanese colonization.

Congratulations to team South Korea for a fantastic showing at the 2024 Paris Olympics and beyond!

To read more about the history of South Korea and the Olympics or to see a list of South Korean medal winners this year, visit our blog post.

By Eun Byoul Oh

August 15 is Korea's Liberation Day, 광복절. 광복절(光復節) which means the "Day When the Light Restores." August 15, 1945 marked Korea's liberation from Japan after 35 years of annexation. Korea was annexed on August 29, 1910 after the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910 went into effect.

Korea suffered greatly under 35 years of Japanese occupation, and the tactics of suppression of Japanese rule has changed throughout the 35 years of colonialism. Towards the end of the occupation in the late 1930s, Japanese Colonial Government of Korea accelerated its effort to re-identify Koreans as Japanese, in order to promote the policy of 내선일체 (One body of Joseon and the Domestic Japanese). The core of the 내선일체 policy of Japan was the decimation of Korean language and culture. The teaching of  the Korean language was prohibited, and Koreans were only allowed to speak and write in Japanese.

By Jon Oaks

For many Korean adoptees, observing Korean Liberation Day is an opportunity to explore and reclaim a sense of identity, bridging the gap between their birth heritage and the culture in which they were raised.

This year, the Korean Connection West Michigan held its Liberation Day Picnic at Millennium Park and Beach in Walker, MI, and invited adoptees from MIKA (Michigan Korean Adoptees) to attend. MIKA plays a vital role in helping Korean adoptees in Michigan stay connected to both their heritage and a broader community of individuals with shared experiences. Sharing information about events such as this is one way they foster that connection.

For adoptees outside of Michigan, KAAN (Korean American Adoptee Adoptive Family Network) provides a list of organizations where adoptees can connect, share experiences, seek advice, and discuss topics related to Korean adoptee identity and heritage.