Category: Newsletter

Thank you to everyone who joined us in New York and Pennsylvania last week!

In New York, we launched the Women’s Rights Under the Division System in Korea report at the United Nations’ 69th Commission on the Status of Women to a packed house! Released to coincide with International Women’s Day and the 80th year of Korea’s division, the report highlights the profound and persistent impact of division and militarism on Korean women’s lives and the urgency of developing a comprehensive approach to human rights. Read the full report here.

In Philadelphia, we met with Korea peace grassroots activists and joined University of Pennsylvania’s Asian American Across Disciplines with Mark Tseng-Putterman to present on “The Far Right and the New Cold War: Transnational Organizing from Korea to the US,” co-sponsored by Koreans 4 Decolonization at Penn and James Joo-Kim Center for Korean Studies.

In Philadelphia, we met with Korea peace grassroots activists and joined University of Pennsylvania’s Asian American Across Disciplines with Mark Tseng-Putterman to present on “The Far Right and the New Cold War: Transnational Organizing from Korea to the US,” co-sponsored by Koreans 4 Decolonization at Penn and James Joo-Kim Center for Korean Studies.

🤝 Organize

Join our April national grassroots meeting on Thursday, April 10 at 5pm PT/8pm ET! Members of Resist U.S.-Led War Movement will provide an overview of their movement and together, we will brainstorm ways to collaborate. Register here.

Following the national meeting, join our ongoing KPNGN New Member Orientation series on the same Zoom link, starting at 6pm PT/9pm ET. The Education Committee will host Part 1 of this ongoing series on the history of the Korean War.

🗓️ Events

April 3 at 1pm HST/4pm PT/7pm ET | APOLOGY & REPARATION: The Jeju 4.3 Retrials and the Japanese American coram nobis Cases: The United States, South Korea, and the Jeju 4.3 Tragedy

To coincide with International Women’s Day, Women Cross DMZ has just released a new report, Women’s Rights Under the Division System in Korea, to shed light on the often overlooked consequences of Korea’s division on women’s lives.

The report — the result of years of research and collaboration among Korean women across borders — exposes the profound and persistent impact of the division system and ongoing militarization on women’s human rights.

Released to coincide with International Women’s Day, the 69th Commission on the Status of Women at the United Nations, and the 80th year of Korea’s division, the report highlights key issues — including the presence of U.S. military bases, the gendered consequences of landmines and unexploded ordnance, and the enduring trauma of family separation — through personal narratives and expert analysis.

Among the key findings:

• Human rights issues exacerbated by the 80-year division: Landmines and unexploded ordnance remnants in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) continue to cause significant harm to civilians, particularly women.
• Militarization’s gendered impact: The ongoing U.S. military presence in South Korea and the expansion of military bases have significant human rights implications, particularly for women living in military camptowns, where they experience systemic sexual violence and exploitation. Furthermore, the expansion of U.S. military bases has displaced local farming communities.
• The ongoing trauma of family separation: Millions of Korean families remain divided by the Korean War, with opportunities for reunification dwindling as separated family members age. The ongoing division has a particular impact on women who have borne the brunt of the emotional, social, and economic burdens of separation.

The report calls for a more comprehensive approach to human rights that prioritizes the needs and agency of the Korean people, and women in particular, and urges the two Koreas and the international community to take immediate action to address the gendered impacts of Korea’s ongoing division and to work toward sustainable peace on the peninsula.

Read the report here!

Join our report launch webinar on Wednesday, March 5, at 5pm PT / 8 pm ET (Thursday, March 6, at 10 am KST). The event will offer Korean language interpretation and will feature report contributors and Korean women leaders:

• Youngmi Cho, Executive Committee Member, Christian Conference of Asia; Former Executive Director, Korean Women’s Movement for Peace
• Lee Jung Ah, Standing Representative, Gyeonggi Women’s Association United
• Lee Jae Jung, National Assembly member, ROK
• Cathi Choi, Executive Director, Women Cross DMZ (moderator)

Join us in New York at the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women!

Women Cross DMZ will be at CSW! Join us for two key events:

March 12 | | Wednesday at 8:30am ET | 10th Floor of the Church Center of the United Nations, 777 UN Plaza, New York NY 10017

This joint session with Women Cross DMZ and the Education for Social Justice Foundation highlights the urgent need for accountability and global adoption of key Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) mechanisms, including UN Security Council Resolution 1325 and the U.S. WPS Act. WCDMZ will also share  research and analysis from the newly released Women’s Rights Under the Division System in Korea report. This event is free and open to the public. Register to attend here.

March 13 | Launching the Feminist Peace Playbook: A Guide for Transforming U.S. Foreign Policy | Thursday at 2:30-4:00 pm ET | UN Church Center, 2nd Floor 777 UN Plaza East (44th St. & 1st Ave), New York City, NY

Just us for the launch of the Feminist Peace Playbook, a comprehensive guide for movements, researchers, policymakers, philanthropists, and journalists, released by the Feminist Peace Initiative — led by MADRE, Women Cross DMZ, and Grassroots Global Justice Alliance — and the Inclusive Global Leadership Initiative at the University of Denver.

Women Cross DMZ on the Hill

Peace on the Korean Peninsula Act is Reintroduced!

On Wednesday, Rep. Brad Sherman and dozens of other co-sponsors reintroduced the Peace on the Korean Peninsula Act. There’s no bill number yet, but in the meantime, check out the list of cosponsors and urge your Congressional representative to become a Korea Peace Champion here. Stay tuned for updates about our annual Korea Peace Advocacy Week!

Stop Politicians Profiting From War Act

Women Cross DMZ endorsed the Stop Politicians Profiting From War Act, introduced by Congresswomen Rashida Tlaib to prohibit Members of Congress, their spouses, and their dependent children from having any financial interests in any company that does business with the Department of Defense and banning them from trading defense stocks. Sign on to become a grassroots supporter here.

Upcoming Events

March 6 | KPNGN’s March National Meeting | This Thursday at 5pm PT/8pm ET

We will debrief the official reintroduction of the Peace on the Korean Peninsula Act (PKPA) and share advocacy efforts to push the bill forward. RSVP here.

March 8 | International Women’s Day: How Secure Aren’t We? | Saturday at 1pm ET

WCDMZ Executive Director Cathi Choi will join Ploughshares Fund alongside Elena Sokova, Executive Director of the Vienna Center for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation, and Dr. Emma Belcher, President of Ploughshares for a virtual webinar. RSVP here.

March 19 | The Far Right and the New Cold War: Transnational Organizing from Korea to the US | Wednesday at 2pm ET

University of Pennsylvania’s Asian American Across the Disciplines presents: The Far Right and the New Cold War: Transnational Organizing from Korea to the US in conversation with Cathi Choi, Executive Director of Women Cross DMZ. Hosted by Professor Mark Tseng-Putterman, Panda Express Postdoctoral Fellow in Asian American Studies in his course Yellow Peril, Red Scare: Cold War Asia in America. Please RSVP here to join us in person or register here to join by Zoom!

March 24 | New Hampshire Peace Action (NHPA) Peace & Justice Conversations: The Feminist Path to Peace in Korea | Monday at 7pm ET

How have women been leading the movement calling for a formal end to the Korean War? What does feminist leadership in peace movements look like? NHPA will hear from WCDMZ’s Echo and Solby on recent Korea Peace Now! Grassroots Network activities and how Women Cross DMZ continues to advocate for peace in Korea and in the region, women’s leadership in the Korea peace process, and a feminist approach to U.S. foreign policy in this virtual presentation. RSVP here.

📚 READ: From the Education Committee:

• Preparations for US-North Korea talks ‘well underway’ in Washington: lawmaker considers the prospect of diplomatic talks between the new Trump administration and North Korea, with perspectives from South Korean lawmakers.
• Final witness examination cements case against Yoon reflects on Yoon Suk-yeol’s testimony at his impeachment trial and recommends that he be removed from office.
• Gender is, once again, determining the contours of South Korea’s most recent political upheaval. Why young South Korean men are at the forefront of the far right protests defending martial law and justifying authoritarianism, while leading the “national-flag brigade.”

Follow Korea Peace Now! on Bluesky! Say hello and check out our new account ✌️

Sincerely,

Cathi Choi

Happy Lunar New Year! Our next KPNGN meeting will happen Thursday, February 13, at 5pm PT/8pm ET. Coordinators of the KPNGN Steering Committee will present their work and discuss ways for you to deepen your knowledge about Korea peace issues and participate in strategy meetings and collective actions to advance our goals. We will also discuss our plans for 2025. RSVP at bit.ly/febkpngn

All committees (Advocacy, Education, Coalition Building, and Membership) are accepting new members! Please email Echo at echo@womencrossdmz.org to join a committee. And if you haven’t already, please sign up for our Korea Peace Now! Grassroots Network here.

KPNGN Orientation Part II: Immediately after the national meeting, at 6pm PT/9pm ET, we’ll continue with Part II of our New Member Orientation. In Part II, our Education Committee will present a brief history of the Korean War, followed by a small group discussion. RSVP at bit.ly/febkpngn.

RSVP for Intergenerational Healing and Learning

KPN X GYOPO | The Stories We Bring to Bear: Flipping the Scripts on Adoption | Thursday, February 6 from 5-6:30pm PT/8-9:30pm ET | RSVP

What exists beyond, around, and throughout the lives of adopted people and their various families and communities? How can we uplift a multitude of narratives in addition to the oft-told “reunion” stories? Individuals adopted from Korea and their first families bring especially critical stories to bear on the topic of ending the Korean War and “tongil” (통일, “reunification of the Korean peninsula”). Join us to hear from award-winning filmmaker Deann Borshay Liem and aspiring director and community organizer Meejin Seol, in a conversation moderated by journalist Anna Kook. Speakers will talk about their work, families, the geopolitics of adoption, and why we cannot hope to understand the history of the Korean War, militarism, or division without understanding the history of transnational adoption. We will also discuss legacies of the ongoing Korean War and the present-day political landscape in South Korea, including impeachment and ongoing resistance by Korean civil society. ASL interpretation will be provided.

Deann Borshay Liem is an Emmy Award-winning documentarian known for exploring war, memory, family and identity. Her work on the Korean War, including Memory of Forgotten War, Crossings, and the oral history project Legacies of the Korean War, explores divided families and women’s role in peacemaking.

Meejin Seol is a queer Korean adoptee, aspiring documentary filmmaker, and dog mom. She currently lives in Seoul and plays with Solidarity Poongmul Pae Jangpoong (소수자연대풍물패 장풍). She moved to Korea with the goals of learning language, deepening her knowledge and practice of poongmul nori, spending time with family, and making a documentary film that pushes beyond traditional ideas about reunion, family and home.

Anna Kook is a multilingual, award-winning reporter who seeks to bring Asian faces and voices to mainstream media. She is currently a correspondent & producer at AJ+. Recently, a story from a series Anna produced and edited, “It’s Bisan from Gaza and I’m Still Alive,” won a Peabody and national Emmy award.

For your reading

NEW! How MAGA Made Its Way to South Korea | Cathi Choi writes for In These Times about the influence of Trump’s MAGA in South Korea. “It would be easy to identify these apparent similarities and not interrogate further. But the connections between U.S. and South Korean far-right forces are both old and new, rooted in decades of U.S. and South Korean militarism, the ongoing Korean War, and the oligarchs who profit,” Cathi writes. “The ongoing events in South Korea should not just be a distant news item for U.S. readers with abstract lessons for “democracy.” We must understand that the United States has been involved with the Korean Peninsula for decades, and U.S. militarism has profoundly shaped South Korea’s political landscape.”

How Right-Wing Forces are Attempting to Undermine Democracy and Peace Activists | This recent political education thread explains the rising transnational, far-right campaign to smear pro-democracy and pro-peace activists, and how intergenerational Koreans (including KPNGN members) are pushing back.

Korea Peace Priorities Coalition Letter to the Trump Administration |The Korea Peace Now! Grassroots Network joined over 40 national organizations in signing a letter urging the Trump administration to pursue a diplomatic, peace-first approach with North Korea focused on improving relations, ending the Korean War, and reducing nuclear risk. Several Korean news outlets covered the letter, including OhmyNews and Daum.

📚 READ: From the Education Committee:

1. How Memories of Struggle Spurred the Defense of South Korea’s Democracy | Journalist Yejin Gim draws connections between the struggles and lessons learned from the Gwangju Uprising in 1980 and the timely and powerful response of the Korean people to Yoon Suk Yeol’s imposition of martial law in S. Korea.
2. TO DRIVE FORWARD AT HIGH SPEED LOOK BACKWARDS | Peter Hayes and Leon Sigal provide thoughtful analysis of the political fallout from Yoon Suk Yeol’s attempted coup and consider the prospects for diplomatic engagement with the DPRK by the new Trump administration.
3. Behind the explosion of Korea’s far right, catalyzed by Yoon | Ji-hye Lee writes for Hankyoreh about the disturbing rise of the far right in South Korea, which strongly embraces Yoon, anti-communism, and anti-Chinese sentiments. Although Yoon failed in his attempt to establish martial rule, he has been successful in rallying his far-right supporters, which has contributed to the current state of political turmoil in the country.

Follow Korea Peace Now! on Bluesky! Say hello and check out our new account ✌️

🛍 Support the Korea Peace Movement: Show your support for Korea peace with one of our new tote bags, hats, baby onesies, and clothing, available here. All money raised will support Korea Peace Now!, our U.S.-based movement for peace in Korea led by Women Cross DMZ. Art by Peter Holland and lazy blender.

Looking forward to seeing you at these upcoming gatherings!

Sincerely,

Cathi Choi and Echo

Next week, join us for our last Korea Peace Now! Grassroots Network gathering of 2024, where we will celebrate all the heart and energy we put towards advocating for peace on the Korean Peninsula and an end to U.S. wars and militarism this year. Come festive! Bring a drink!

RSVP: Thursday, December 12, at 5pm PT/8pm ET

🔔 UPDATE: Lift the Ban on Christine Ahn’s Travel to South Korea

Thank you to everyone who signed our petition demanding that the Yoon Suk Yeol government lift the ban on Christine Ahn’s travel to South Korea! We collected over 1,200 signatures (and counting) from prominent activists, academics, cultural workers, diplomats, and more. Despite many inquiries, Christine, WCDMZ’s Founder and Co-Director, still has not received any official response or explanation from South Korean officials on why she was recently denied entry to South Korea. We are continuing to gather signatures to keep pressuring the South Korean government to overturn the ban on Christine. A free press is crucial to prevent democratic backsliding, and we appreciate everyone who has covered this story, including in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, Korean Quarterly, Japan Forward, Hyperallergic, and Hankyoreh.

Sign and share the petition at bit.ly/liftingtheban!

✍️UPCOMING EVENTS:

TOMORROW! What Does the Trump Presidency Mean for the Korean Peninsula? | Monday, December 2 at 5pm PT/8pm ET (Tuesday, December 3 at 10am KST)

Join us for a moderated panel discussion and strategy session on the incoming administration’s plans for Korea.

Under Biden, Washington engineered a new war alliance (JAKUS) between the U.S., Japan, and the R.O.K., with the aim of coordinating military aggression against the D.P.R.K. The number of U.S.-R.O.K. military exercises has significantly increased, with hundreds of days of war games conducted in Korea annually. This summer, these exercises included rehearsing plans for a nuclear strike on the Korean Peninsula. So what does a return to a Republican presidency under Donald Trump mean for Korea?

Co-hosted by Nodutdol and Korea Peace Now!, this panel will feature Cathi Choi (Women Cross DMZ), KJ Noh (Pivot to Peace), Colleen Moore (United Methodist Church – General Board of Church and Society), and Dae Han Song (International Strategy Center). The discussion will be in English and Korean interpretation will be provided.

In Hope with Palestinian Liberation Theology: A Delegation with Sabeel, hosted by KPN Faith-Based Caucus | Thursday, December 5 at 5pm PT/8pm ET

In August, twelve U.S. Christian leaders returned from Palestine-Israel as the first in a wave of delegations hosted by Sabeel, which is the grassroots, ecumenical Palestinian liberation theology movement rooted in the universal ethic of nonviolence. The goals of the trip were to:

1. Be with and encourage the people who are under attack
2. Expose human rights violations
3. Strengthen and encourage U.S. Christian advocacy for a just peace

From standing in the rubble of illegal home demolitions in East Jerusalem for which the Israeli Occupation Forces bill the indigenous Palestinians, to praying at the militarized Gaza border with the Israeli peace activist co-resistors Rabbis for Human Rights, to weeping in the charred homes where U.S. weapons precision bombed densely populated residential areas in the Balata Refugee Camp ghetto that holds eight generations of internally displaced Palestinian refugees, Pax Christi member Jessica Sun will be reporting back on the unspeakable horrors and violence she saw wreaked by the U.S.-funded, genocidal state of Israel, and the astounding tales of heroic Palestinian integrity and resilience in spite of it all. Join us on Thursday, December 5 at 5pm PT/8pm ET! RSVP at bit.ly/sabeel24.

📚 READ: From the Education Committee:

1. A contrived myth? North Korean troops battling the Ukrainians in Kursk | Tim Beal from the Korea Policy Institute offers critical analysis on the rumors of D.P.R.K. troops fighting in Ukraine.
2. Trump picks ex-N. Korea policy official as his principal deputy national security adviser | Song Sang-ho from Yonhap News Agency writes about Trump’s nomination of Alex Wong, who previously served as a lead negotiator in denuclearization talks with the D.P.R.K., to principal deputy national security adviser.

🛍️ NEW! Support the Korea Peace Movement: Show your support for Korea peace with one of our newly added tote bags, hats, baby onesies, and clothing available here. All money raised will support Korea Peace Now!, our U.S.-based movement for peace in Korea led by Women Cross DMZ. Art by Peter Holland and lazy blender.

Looking forward to seeing you at these upcoming gatherings!

Sincerely,

Cathi Choi and Echo

Like many of you, we are grieving the results of the U.S. elections and are deeply concerned about the most vulnerable in our communities, our democracy, and the potential consequences for the Korean Peninsula. Arguably no other U.S. president has had a more wildly unpredictable and extreme relationship with North Korea than Donald Trump. In his first year in office, Trump threatened North Korea with “fire and fury like the world has never seen.” He also instituted a travel ban on North Korea.

Trump squandered the opportunity for peace at the 2019 Hanoi summit by insisting that North Korea hand over its nuclear weapons program without any U.S. concessions or security guarantees, badly damaging relations with North Korea. Throughout his most recent campaign, he boasted that North Korea is “afraid” of him and said South Korea should be a “money machine” based on the U.S. troops stationed there.

As we look towards the future, we know that there is urgent and critical work to be done as U.S.-based peace activists to forge peace in Korea. Ultimately, this work will not bound to any one election cycle, but instead depends entirely on the political will that we, the people, build. Our growing Korea Peace Now! Grassroots Network must organize our communities and build solidarity with fellow anti-war activists and movements across generations and national boundaries. Read our full statement here.

Join our November National Meeting this Thursday, November 14, at 5pm PT // 8pm ET where we’ll be joined by fellow organizers from Nodutdol, who will discuss their US Out of Korea Campaign, and Veterans for Peace, who will report back on their June trip to South Korea and the Hyosun MiSeon Peace Park Project. RSVP here.

TAKE ACTION

Sign the Petition: Lift the Ban on Christine Ahn’s Travel to South Korea

On October 30, 2024, Women Cross DMZ Founder and Co-Director Christine Ahn was barred from boarding an Asiana Airlines flight from Honolulu to the Republic of Korea, citing R.O.K. immigration authorities. Ahn was on her way to deliver the keynote address at the International Youth Peace Forum in Gyeonggi Province, set to be hosted by the provincial government on November 2, 2024.

We are outraged that Ahn – a respected Korean American peace activist – has been barred from traveling to South Korea without any reason or justification, which is a violation of her human rights. This restriction prevents her from participating in an important international civil society forum and violates her right to defend human rights.

The barring of Christine Ahn now is particularly concerning, given the current geopolitical tensions and the urgent need for dialogue. With the increasing likelihood of military confrontation on the Korean Peninsula, the voices of those advocating for peace must be heard, not silenced. Women Cross DMZ calls upon the Yoon government to uphold its democratic values by allowing Christine Ahn to freely travel to South Korea.

Sign and share the petition, available in English and Korean.

RSVP: Collaborative WARmerica Screening in Seattle

Join Nodutdol, Sông2Sea, Korea Peace Now!, and Resist US-Led War Seattle on Thursday, November 14, from 3:30-5:30pm PST for a screening and discussion of WARmerica’s Fate, a South Korean documentary by the filmmaker Kim Cheol-min 김철민. This film focuses on the impacts of American warmongering and imperialism, tracing connections between its settler-colonial roots and ongoing efforts to ensure economic and military dominance.

The event will be hosted near the University of Washington Seattle campus. There is a hybrid option available and snacks will be provided. RSVP here. Please contact Echo at echo@womencrossdmz.org if you want to organize a screening in your community.

RSVP: Post-Election Webinar Discussion on December 2, 5pm PT // 8 pm ET

Join us for a moderated panel discussion and strategy session on Monday, December 2 at 5pm PT // 8pm ET. Co-hosted by Nodutdol and Korea Peace Now, this panel will feature Cathi Choi (Women Cross DMZ), KJ Noh (Pivot to Peace), and Dae Han Song (International Strategy Center). The discussion will be in English and Korean interpretation will be provided. RSVP here.

READ

From the Education Committee:

• Dan Leaf and Christine Ahn: The next president must defuse the Korean crisis to avoid nuclear catastrophe: This op-ed highlights the need for diplomacy and engagement with North Korea and identifies concrete steps that can be taken to move away from the possibility of a nuclear arms race on the Korean Peninsula and towards a lasting peace.
• A recent article about the winner of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature – Korean author Han Kang. Kang’s most recent novel, We Do Not Part, portrays the tragic 1948 Jeju massacre through the perspective of three women. The English translation will be available in January 2025 and members of the Korea Peace Study group will read the book and later make a presentation. If you are interested in participating in the Han Kang study sub-group, please contact Tasha at tessen27@gmail.com.

Looking forward to seeing you this Thursday!

Sincerely,

Cathi Choi and Echo

Our October KPNGN Meeting will be taking place on Thursday, October 10 at 5pm PT/ 8pm ET! We will be joined by Becky Belcore, Co-Director of National Korean American Service and Education Consortium (NAKASEC) and Executive Director of NAKASEC Action Fund, who will speak about the work of NAKASEC’s Action Fund Pennsylvania’s program for the upcoming November elections. Register here.

KPNGN Orientation Part II: Immediately after the national meeting, we’ll continue with Part II of our New Member Orientation at 6pm PT/9pm ET! This is the second session of our three-part series. In Part II, our Education Committee will present a brief history of the Korean War, followed by a small group discussion. Use the same Zoom link as above.

Upcoming events:

RSVP for “Memoir, Trauma, and Healing for the Korean Diaspora”: We are back with our ongoing Intergenerational Healing & Learning Series! On October 15, author and professor Grace M. Cho and journalist and writer Iris Yi Youn Kim will discuss their work and how memoirs can act as a vessel for unpacking and healing intergenerational trauma, especially for members of the Korean diaspora. This gathering will take place on Tuesday, October 15 at 5pm PT / 8pm ET. Register here.

RSVP for “Peacemaking Through Collaboration Between Christians in North Korea and South Korea: Marking the 40 Years of Tozanso Process”: Rev. Kurt Esslinger, who serves as a mission co-worker assigned to the National Council of Churches in Korea, will discuss ecumenical efforts for Korea peace through the Tozanso Process, which began in 1984 by the World Council of Churches in order to build relationships between Christians from North and South Korea. Charles Ryu will moderate the webinar discussion, which is taking place Thursday, October 24, 5pm PT / 8 pm ET. Register here. Hosted by KPNGN Faith-Based Caucus.

READ: From the Education Committee:

• On North Korea, Kamala Harris Should Prioritize Peace | Cathi Choi writes about the need for U.S. presidential candidates Harris and Trump to develop a new approach to North Korea that focuses on diplomatic engagement and reducing tensions in order to address the security crisis on the Korean peninsula.
• Hanging by a Thread: US-led War Drills in the Korean Peninsula and the Threat of Global Nuclear War | Dr. Simone Chun analyzes the destabilizing consequences of non-stop US-led war drills in South Korea and discusses the strategic interest for Washington to work towards regional de-escalation and normalizing US-North Korea relations.

Support the Korea Peace Movement: Show your support for Korea peace with one of our t-shirts, sweatshirts, or hoodies, available here. All money raised will support Korea Peace Now!, our U.S.-based movement for peace in Korea led by Women Cross DMZ. Art by Peter Holland and lazy blender.

New Korea Peace Champions: In better news, in the last two months we have had several new Korea Peace Champions! Thanks to the constituents of Reps. Donald Davis (D-NC-1), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA-18), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ-5), James C. Moylan (R-GU-At Large), and Melanie A. Stansbury (D-NM-1) who helped make this happen! H.R.1369 now has 48 co-sponsors. Please help us get to 50!

Looking forward to seeing you this Thursday!

Sincerely,

Cathi Choi and Echo

Our September KPNGN meeting is happening on Thursday, September 12 at 5pm PT/ 8pm ET! Mark your calendars and register here. This month, we’ll be hosting discussions on the recent Democratic and Republican National Conventions and their implications for Korea peace, as well as what the upcoming 2024 elections mean for furthering peace on the Korean peninsula.

SAVE THE DATE: Berkeley Crossings September 20 Screening

Crossings (2021) by Emmy award-winning filmmaker Deann Borshay Liem, is coming to Berkeley! Crossings follows 30 women peace activists from around the world who crossed the DMZ from North to South Korea, calling for peace on the Korean Peninsula. A screening event for the documentary will be hosted by UC Berkeley’s Center for Korean Studies on September 20 at 5pm PT. Filmmaker Deann Borshay Liem and WCDMZ Co-Director Christine Ahn will lead a discussion following the screening.

Register and learn more info about the event here.

RECAP: No Nuclear War Drills! 8/18 DC Action

The U.S.-South Korean tabletop exercise “Iron Mace 24” was held from July 30 to August 1. It was the first war drill simulating a hypothetical nuclear war in Korea. From August 19 to 29, Ulchi Freedom Shield, one of the most extensive war drills in the world, was conducted. Korea Peace Now! DC members and allies protested in front of the White House, demanding that Biden should halt these offensive military war drills, which are provocative in nature and harmful to our environment.

Credit to HK Suh

UPCOMING EVENT: Korea Peace Study Group

On Friday, September 13 at 5 pm PT/8 pm ET, John Kim and Johnny Atlas will present their research on several of the United States’ presidential candidates, focusing on their positions on Korea, especially on ending the Korean War! We hope you’ll join us for this timely topic. Register here.

WATCH: End the Travel Ban to North Korea! KTOWN SOCIAL CLUB EP. 42

WCDMZ Co-Directors Christine Ahn and Cathi Choi sit down with Ktown Social Club’s Michael Kim and Michael Won to discuss ending the US travel ban on North Korea and building a movement for peace in Korea and ending the Korean War.

From Chinatown to Vietnam: Locating Histories of Asian American Anti-Imperialism

Historian Mark Tseng-Putterman presents his research on Asian American anti-imperialism during the Cold War period, focusing on how Asian American activists worked across ethnic, class, and generational lines. This presentation, first shared at KPNGN’s February 2024 meeting, shares how prior generations of Asian American anti-imperialist activism can inform our work today to end the war in Korea and end U.S. militarism globally.

READ: The US has renewed draconian North Korea travel ban, yet again

Cathi Choi discusses the harmful consequences of the State Department’s decision to renew the travel ban on North Korea and the missed opportunity for constructive diplomatic engagement with the DPRK.

Links from the KPNGN Education Committee:

• KPI at US Out of Korea Rally – San Francisco, 8/17: Paul Liem, from the Korea Policy Institute, recently spoke at a US Out of Korea Rally about how conservative forces in Yoon Suk Yeol’s S. Korea have been moving the Korean Peninsula in a direction that is not conducive to peace and is, in fact, increasing the chances of new hostilities breaking out.
• The Selfie—and ‘Sports Diplomacy’—That Brings North and South Koreans Together: We felt inspired to see athletes from both sides of the DMZ celebrating their Olympic successes together in such a natural way. Tensions have been escalating on the Korean Peninsula and there has not been an abundance of good news lately. The Olympic photo story delighted and inspired us.

STAY TUNED: Korea Peace Now!’s Intergenerational Learning and Healing Series will be back this fall! In the meantime, our first two events are available to watch now on YouTube:

• Intergenerational Trauma and the Korean War: Healing Across Generations, Helena Soholm & Joseph Han
• KPNGN Reflections on Unbind Your Heart: Korean Han / Grief Transmutation Ceremony, One Year Later

Looking forward to seeing you next week!

Sincerely,

Cathi Choi and Echo

We are skipping our August KPNGN meeting, but will resume with our regular schedule of meeting the second Thursday every month on September 12 at 5pm PT // 8 pm ET! September’s meeting will also resume the KPNGN New Member Orientation three-part series. Please mark your calendars. Registration link to follow.

WATCH: New Interview with KTOWN SOCIAL CLUB, “End the Travel Ban to North Korea”

Women Cross DMZ Co-Directors Christine Ahn and Cathi Choi sat down with KTOWN SOCIAL CLUB’s Michael Kim and Michael Won to discuss ending the US travel ban to North Korea and movement-building for Korea peace. Watch the interview here!

RECAP: July 27 Armistice to Peace Rally in Washington D.C.

On the 71st Anniversary of the Korean Armistice Agreement, members from Korea Peace Now!, Korean American Peace Fund, Candlelight Vigil Washington DC, Veterans for Peace, ANSWER Coalition, Ending Korean War Teaching Initiative, and Korean drumming troupe Han Pan joined together for a rally and a march from the White House to the Lincoln Memorial. We called for the United States to end its longest-running conflict by ending the Korean War with a peace agreement.

Photo by HK Suh

Photo by Monica Chang

REGISTER: “Humanitarian Engagement with the DPRK in the Midst of a Hardening Political Climate” with Joy Yoon

Join us for a webinar with Joy Yoon on her work providing humanitarian aid to North Korean people on Thursday, August 22 at 5pm PT/8pm ET. Register here!

Joy Yoon is the co-founder of Ignis Community, a nonprofit organization that specializes in treating children with developmental disabilities. She is one of the few Americans who has actually spent over ten years living and working in the DPRK and is the author of the books, Discovering Joy: Ten Years in North Korea and Crossing the Divide: Learning to Love in North Korea. She and her husband’s work inside the nation has included humanitarian outreach, social enterprises, and medical treatment and education, which has been featured in TIME, Mission Frontiers, and the Wall Street Journal. Joy specializes in Educational Therapy and is the Director for Special Education at the Pyongyang Spine Rehabilitation Center in North Korea where she works with children who have cerebral palsy, autism, and other developmental disabilities.

WATCH: Midsummer Dreams for Korea Peace: Celebrating Our Narrative Changemakers

ICYMI: Women Cross DMZ’s July 2024 fundraiser is now available on Youtube!

Photos by Taylor Kaltman

We honored three pre-eminent champions of narrative change for peace: Bruce Cumings, foremost historian on the Korean War; Deann Borshay Liem, Emmy award-winning documentary filmmaker; and Viet Thanh Nguyen, Pulitzer Prize-winning author. Their artistry and scholarship have reshaped our memories of the Korean and Vietnam Wars by uplifting the voices of those most directly impacted.

We also heard from intergenerational feminist leadership from Women Cross DMZ — Christine Ahn and Cathi Choi — whose work is charting new paths for Korea Peace. Dohee Lee, renowned multidisciplinary artist, nourished our souls with a special performance with music, song, and dance. Thank you so much to our community for supporting our work to end the “forgotten” Korean War and cultivate the next generation of Korea Peace activists!

SIGN BY AUGUST 23: Petition to End the Travel Ban on North Korea

Since 2017, U.S. citizens have been prohibited from traveling to North Korea, a draconian holdover from the Trump administration. This overly restrictive policy has prevented Koreans from returning to their hometowns and visiting their loved ones in North Korea, and time is running out for many of them.

The travel ban on North Korea has also hindered humanitarian workers from delivering urgently needed assistance, and others from engaging in meaningful educational and cultural exchanges, which are crucial to fostering trust and understanding between two nations that have been at war for seven decades.

Ending the travel ban would also be a good-faith action and signal that the United States wants to engage in diplomacy toward peace — which would benefit both Americans and Koreans. We call on President Biden to fulfill his campaign promise “to reunite Korean Americans separated from loved ones in North Korea for decades” by ending the 2017 ban and allow U.S. citizens to once again travel freely to North Korea.

The deadline to sign onto the petition is August 23. Add your voice to demand the US stop separating Korean families here and share with your communities.

LIVE: Crossings is now available to watch for free until August 31!

The film, by Emmy award-winning filmmaker Deann Borshay Liem, follows 30 women peace activists from around the world who crossed the DMZ from North to South Korea, calling for peace on the Korean Peninsula. The groundbreaking mission of Women Cross DMZ is framed with historic newsreels and punctuated with contemporary news coverage.

To date, we have screened Crossings over 75 times to thousands of people around the world. At each screening, participants consistently tell us that this film provides important context about the Korean War and that they are inspired by our activism and organizing. While it is a herculean effort to end a more than 70-year war, we know that the more people who are educated about this issue, the more support we will gain to finally end the Korean War.

Crossings is currently streaming on the PBS app and Youtube with captions and Korean subtitle options, available to watch for free until August 31. Crossings is also available on:

• PBS Passport
• AppleTV+
• Prime Video

STAY TUNED: Korea Peace Now!’s Intergenerational Learning and Healing Series will be back this fall! In the meantime, our first two events are available to watch now on Youtube:

1. Intergenerational Trauma and the Korean War: Healing Across Generations, Helena Soholm & Joseph Han
2. KPNGN Reflections on Unbind Your Heart: Korean Han / Grief Transmutation Ceremony, One Year Later

In peace,

Cathi Choi

Register for our monthly KPNGN National Meeting this Thursday, July 11 at 5pm PT / 8 pm ET. We’ll debrief the recent No to NATO Action in D.C., Cancel RIMPAC in San Diego, as well as preview upcoming campaigns and actions around July 27. We’ll also discuss the ongoing campaign to End the Travel Ban to North Korea. Register for the meeting here!

We would also like to re-share our Korea Peace Now! Grassroots Network Community Agreements, which serve to create a safe space for members of the Korea Peace Now! Grassroots Network to build community based on a culture of respect and trust across differences in order to foster a more impactful movement. These mutual commitments can also be used to hold each other accountable if and when conflicts arise. Please review the agreements if you haven’t done so already, which include our shared principles and values.

Join us in DC on July 27 for ✌️Armistice to Peace: DC Action to End the Korean War✌️

In 1953, the United States and North Korea signed the Korean Armistice Agreement, which temporarily halted but did not formally end the Korean War. This unresolved war has kept families separated and is the root cause of tensions on the Peninsula. Rally and march with us in Washington DC to end to the Korean War! Everyone is welcome to join.

No meeting in August. We’ll be closed for a summer break August 5-16. We’ll resume these monthly calls (which take place the second Thursday of every month) on September 12 at 5 pm.

Looking forward to seeing you this week!

Sincerely,

Cathi Choi and Echo

Last month, Korea Peace Now! launched an online public educational series to critically understand the impacts of intergenerational trauma stemming from the Korean War and other U.S. forever wars.

Through dialogue, political education, and storytelling, this series aims to empower our community to take action for peace, build bridges across generations, and forge a path toward realizing our collective security and liberation. Our speakers will highlight how intergenerational healing informs their work and efforts to end the ongoing Korean War. We will also discuss how the fate of the Korean War is inextricably intertwined with all movements seeking to end U.S. wars and militarism globally.

📣 JOIN US: Reflections on Unbind Your Heart: Korean Han / Grief Transmutation Ceremony, One Year Later, this Wednesday, June 12, at 5pm PT/8pm PT. Register here!

For our second gathering of the Intergenerational Learning and Healing Series, we will hear from Jungwon Kim and Yoon Ra, who will share their reflections from last year’s Unbind Your Heart: Korean Han / Grief Transmutation Ceremony where participants transmuted collective, generational grief and rage, 한 / Han, into a wellspring of righteous anger and strength to call for an end to the Korean War.

Both speakers will discuss the process of blending grassroots community organizing with ritual, performance, and song in order to transform and counter state violence and warmaking. They will also share about their work more broadly and why we must prioritize community, ritual, and spiritual resistance in organizing and narrative-building practices. After their presentations, participants will have the opportunity to share their own stories in smaller breakout rooms facilitated by each speaker.

   

Don’t forget to check out the recording of our first gathering, Intergenerational Trauma and the Korean War: Healing Across Generations, where we heard from award-winning author Joseph Han and psychologist and shaman Helena Choi Soholm. Both speakers shared their approaches to healing intergenerational trauma and grappling with their families’ histories, the legacies of U.S. imperialism, and the ongoing war in Korea. Watch here!

✌️JOIN: Join us at our KPNGN National Meeting this Thursday, June 13, at 5pm PT/8pm ET! We’ll continue with Part III of our New Member Orientation! This is the third and final session of our three-part series. In Part III, the Membership Committee will host a Q&A session and open discussion to empower newcomers and longtime activists alike to speak up for peace on the Korean Peninsula. Bring your questions about the Korean War, our movement for peace for Korea, advocacy, or anything else that might be on your mind. This session is for you all! Register here.

To learn more about the history of Korea Peace Now! and Women Cross DMZ’s work, the Membership Committee recommends watching this short video on Korea Peace Now!

🗣️ LEARN: The KPNGN Education Committee suggests reading the following article:

• The New Cold War Is Sending Tremors through Northeast Asia – This dossier from the Tricontinental Institute for Social Research discusses the U.S.-led “New Cold War” against China and its destabilizing consequences for Northeast Asia, in particular the Korean Peninsula, the Taiwan Strait, and Japan.

📺 WATCH: “River of Peace” with Hannah Lee

As part of WILPF’s recent U.S. 35th Triennial Congress, KPNGN member Hannah Lee gave a presentation on Women Cross DMZ and KPNGN’s origins, campus organizing, and collections of personal reflections as well as Koreans’ solidarity with Palestine and shared history as we prepare for an East Asia conflict. Special thanks to KPNGN member Tina Shelton, one of the organizers of the WILPF Congress, for arranging this opportunity. Watch here!

WELCOME! Please join us in welcoming Women Cross DMZ’s new communications consultant, Solby Lim!

Solby is a Korean diasporic researcher and storyteller based out of New York, NY. She graduated magna cum laude from Barnard College in 2022 with a degree in History and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, where she completed a thesis on a cultural history of internationalism as forms of political and cultural intimacies between northern Korea (DPRK) and Third World Liberation movements during the 1960s. As an undergraduate student, Solby worked as editor and intern for Barnard’s Communications department, pitching and writing profile stories and campus news starting her sophomore year.

Solby earned her master’s degree in Oral History from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences in 2024, where she created Tidal Notes: A Critical Oral History of Asian and Asian/American Student Organizing at Columbia and Barnard, 1990s to 2020s. Additionally, she served as the public programming fellow for Columbia’s Oral History Master of Arts (OHMA) program as a graduate student.

Looking forward to seeing you this week!

Sincerely,

Cathi Choi