By Yejin Kim
The author is a Metro/City news reporter of The Korea Daily.
In the 1980s, one of the most popular businesses for Korean immigrants seeking the American dream was the liquor store. At the time, it was a business that didn’t require special skills or much capital to start.
In fact, it is said that by the end of the 1980s, 75% of liquor stores in South LA were owned by Koreans. They were able to build their economic foundation through hard work and persistence in the face of racism and crime.
“Liquor Store Dreams” is a recently released documentary by second-generation Korean-American director So Yun Um. Using her father, Hae Sup Um, a liquor store owner, as the protagonist, Um explores the generational and cultural differences within an immigrant family. The director herself, a so-called “liquor store baby,” appeared in the film to enhance its realism.
Having lived through the April 29, 1992 riots himself, father Um still carries painful memories and fears associated with black people. On the other hand, daughter Um, who was born and raised in the United States, holds a stronger sense of racial equality. This puts her at odds with her father, who insists on moving forward and forgetting the past while empathizing with black people.
“When the George Floyd case happened, I was so scared that there would be another riot like the one in 1992,” he says, adding, “If you haven’t experienced it, don’t talk about it.” On the other hand, the daughter retorts, “It happened because a black man died due to police brutality,” and says, “You have to think about black rights and understand the sadness.”
In “Liquor Store Dreams,” the cultural differences between first-generation Korean American parents who experienced discrimination and their second-generation children who value racial harmony are explored. The documentary also reveals the conflicts between parents and children due to generational differences. The parents believe that girls should get married and start a family when they are old enough, while the daughter insists that marriage is a personal choice. The conflict between father and daughter is typical of most Korean-American families.
Generational conflicts are common in Korea, but in the U.S., they are compounded by cultural differences. It is said that Korean immigrant families are more likely to experience cultural assimilation, where Korean culture and American culture do not coexist but rather exist in a one-sided manner, leading to more intergenerational conflicts. To prevent or resolve these conflicts, experts say it is important to understand the cultural differences between the first generation of Korean Americans and the next generation.
The first generation also needs to move away from stereotypes of certain races and realize that everyone is equal. “We can’t change discrimination, but we have to educate ourselves and fight to eliminate it,” says director Um in the documentary, adding that “cultures need to come together regardless of race.”
Cultural assimilation is a phenomenon in which an existing culture disappears due to an influx of outside culture. However, cultural coexistence, where two different cultural elements appear simultaneously in a Korean-American family, is preferable. Only then will it be possible to have a two-way communication instead of a one-way street.
Korean-American families are unique in that they are immigrant families, and Korean-American society is an immigrant society. That is why we need to make efforts to understand the American culture of the parents and the Korean culture of the next generation. This will prevent identity crises among the next generation of Korean Americans. Intergenerational understanding and harmony are the keys to ensuring that the Korean immigrant history continues to thrive and grow.
