Korean American Communities from Sea to Sea
Koreans and their descendants forms one of the largest groups of Oriental Americans, of which they form about 11 percent. Up until a point, there were very few of them indeed in the United States. But since the Korean War, thousands of refugees have poured in from Communist North Korea (which does not normally allow its citizens to leave the country). They, and their offspring, have included such professors as MIT’s Sebastian Seung; “Simpsons” co- producer Daniel Chun; R & B singer Lena Park; comedian Esther Ku; and innumerable others.
In the Chicago area, most Koreans live in the area just north of the city. They have formed an organization of over 600 members (not all of them Korean) called the Chicago Korean Language Meetup Group for people who want to improve their knowledge of the Korean language (which, incidentally, is not related in any way to Chinese, nor to Japanese, as was long thought). They also discuss such issues as the Constitution of South Korea and Korean music. Koreans in Chicago have also set up restaurants like Han Bat, which also offers take out. One satisfied customer has praised the soup and kimchi (a Korean vegetable dish) made here.