The collaborative research journey of Dr. Joyce Yip Green and artist Helen H. Kim began with their shared reflections as Asian American women with aging immigrant parents. Their personal stories and cultural connections fueled their desire to delve into the lives of the Lao and Korean communities through (re)Location: The Lao/Korean Acculturation Project. Ultimately, Joyce and Helen’s work sheds light on the broader Asian American experience amidst America’s geopolitical influences.
During the 1970s and 80s, an era during which Joyce and Helen moved to the US as children with their families, Laos and South Korea faced significant challenges. Laos grappled with the aftermath of the Vietnam War and the rise of communism while South Korea navigated rapid post-war industrialization that led to political and socioeconomic tensions. These circumstances, along with American policies such as the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 and the Refugee Act of 1980, led many in Laos and South Korea to seek safety and opportunity in the United States.
The aim of (re)Location is to understand the diasporic experiences and acculturation process of Lao refugees and Korean immigrants. It incorporates art-based methodologies such as drawing, collecting artifacts, and singing to facilitate diverse forms of expression of ideas and emotions. Interviews with 10 Lao and 10 Korean elders who migrated to the US in the 70s and 80s took place between 2021 and 2022. Though these participants are not representative of the comprehensive cross-section of the two communities, they provided insight into Lao and Korean migration and settlement experiences. An overview of participant statistics can be found in the infographic below.
Three main themes emerged from the research. First was the impact of community on participants’ adjustment and integration in the US, with already-established family and friends offering essential support in various aspects of migration and settlement. Involvement in religious institutions—Buddhist temples for Lao participants and Christian churches for Korean participants—often played a vital role in cultural maintenance and support. The second significant theme was demonstrating exemplary behavior through civic duty. Participants saw activities such as voting, obeying laws, and participating in American customs as ways to establish legitimacy and gain respect against negative assumptions in society. The third theme was a sense of belonging through identity and interactions. Belongingness was influenced by familial ties, Lao/Korean communal and religious affiliations, and national allegiance, whether that was to their country of origin or the US. Participants’ sense of identity, which also played a part in their sense of belonging, was affected by external influences, such as being viewed as perpetual foreigners and facing challenges with English proficiency, and inter-Asian and interracial comparisons and perceptions.
The above themes were shaped by three mediators: liminality, language, and religion. Liminality reflected the participants’ constant state of flux and uncertainty in understanding their identities and sense of home. Language often served as a barrier to autonomy, agency, and/or engagement in American society but also linked participants to their cultural identity. Religion—both as an institution and spiritual practice—provided cultural continuity, community, and spiritual strength during the acculturation process.
In conclusion, (re)Location: The Lao/Korean Acculturation Project illuminates the complex experiences of Lao and Korean immigrants, highlighting the interplay of community, identity, sense of place, and external factors in their acculturation journey in America. The stories of the 20 participating elder adults provide insight into the Lao and Korean immigrant experiences as well as to the broader discourse on Asian American identity formation. We are reminded of the resilience, diversity, and cultural contributions of Lao and Korean migrants to the tapestry of American society.
