Background
The SS Gaelic, carrying the first 102 immigrants from Korea, arrived at Honolulu, Hawaii, on January 13, 1903. This hard-working group started a new life on Hawaii’s sugar farms. Now, more than a century later, Korean Americans have become one of the United States’ most actively contributing ethnic groups.
However, this group remains relatively slow in assimilating to its new nation. Research from the University of Southern California on how strong immigrants feel about belonging to the American community showed that only 15.3 percent of Korean Americans think they belong to the American community. ABC’s Nightline aired a show on July 27, 1999, titled “New Faces on Main Street,” which referred to the Korean-American community as “a community within the community.”
The general impression is that Asian Americans generally do not participate in community affairs nor are they loyal to America. For Korean Americans, this approach to living in the United States is a serious problem.
Good Neighboring Foundation (GNF) was established in 2000 to meet the challenges of drawing a new road map for immigrant groups to follow. Good Neighboring Campaign (GNC), one of GNF’s projects, currently focuses on the Korean-American community and has plans to expand to other Asian immigrant communities.
Assimilation for immigrants from Asia is particularly challenging simply because they do not “look like Americans.” Small things like admiring the immigrants’ primary symbol—the Statute of Liberty, a Western woman holding a torch—do not come easily for Asians because of their different appearance.
GNF wants Asian immigrants to have the following sentiment, echoing the words from the preamble of the U.S. Constitution: “Our country, America, we are here to help you form a more perfect union!” Such an attitude makes assimilation easier and more genuine. GNC encourages Korean Americans to take ownership of America, while still acknowledging their Korean heritage.
History
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.
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.
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.
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 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.