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The
Background of the Good Neighboring Campaign
 Since
1981, Sunny K. Park has believed that many new immigrants from
Asia love America and appreciate what America has to offer. Such opportunities
include education, freedom, and a chance to settle here and raise families in a
prosperous and giving environment.
Sunny Park also realized that immigrants in general are
stereotyped as being less loyal to America than other citizens. One problem
is that while immigrants are busy establishing themselves, they do not
participate in larger community projects and the uniquely American volunteerism
culture. Sunny became distressed that America neither noticed nor utilized
fully the resources of the immigrant population.
In 1991, East-West Monitors, a free news service, was
founded to publicize and distribute the news of the Asian-American community
to America’s major news media. East-West Monitors stayed in business for
eighteen months, faxing community news in English to approximately 80 American
media organizations on a weekly basis, but poor results forced closing
the operation.
Sunny Park started in 1996 to devote much more time to
making public speeches and writing columns for newspapers and magazines
to encourage new immigrants to speed up their assimilation into American
society and its unique culture. The Good Neighboring Campaign (GNC) was
born in early 2000, replacing its forerunner, the Americanization Movement
for Immigrants.
In August 2000, the Good Neighboring Campaign received
an overwhelming response from about forty Korean pastors, as Sunny Park
presented the issue of assimilation at the Global Leadership Forum. Park’s
presentation and ideas became a regular topic at monthly Jesus Awakening
Movement for America (JAMA) forums. The Christian and Korean movements
seemingly are apparently working towards the same agenda.
December 2001 saw the Good Neighboring Campaign receive
its IRS tax ID number and apply for nonprofit organization status.
GNC in January 2002 held its first three-day campaigners’
training seminar in its Atlanta headquarters, with twelve representatives
present from all around the country: Mr. Henry Kang and Mr. Don W. Park
of New York, Dr. Seong-hyung Lee of North Carolina, Mr. David Yi of New
Jersey, Mr. Jay Eun of Georgia, Mr. Jin-man Kim of Minnesota, Mr. Young-joon
Chang of Illinois, Mr. Hae-un Lee of Nevada, Mr. Chris Kang of central
California, Mr. James Ha of southern California, and Mr. Jung-ki Lee of
northern California. These seminar graduates were given the title of Coordinators.
These titles do not indicate a hierarchy of any kind; the movement belongs
to its members.
In March 2002, based on the suggestion of the coordinators,
the name of the campaign was changed to the Good Neighboring Campaign (GNC).
The Good Neighboring Foundation, Inc., was established at that time as
the umbrella organization that will fund all GNC movement projects.
copyrights GNC 2004 |
