As a proud daughter of Korean immigrant parents who was born and raised in LA, I’ve been entirely shaped by my mom’s business, which continues to operate in the heart of downtown. As young girls, my sister and I would admire her work sitting on boutique shelves while we traveled and walked the massive aisles of trade shows as she both exhibited and bought; we’d help move warehouses as seasons required pivots, and pack up orders alongside her team, all Mexican immigrants. I was 4 years old when she started and some of her employees have been working with her for over 30 years.
I’ve learned over shared tables of dduk and champurrado, gimbap and tamales that family, food, community, resiliency and hard work are shared veins in the heart of the Korean and Mexican immigrant story. I’ve traced these same veins being married to a son of Chinese immigrants and living alongside immigrants from all over the world - the heart is large and it gives life to the vibrancy of Los Angeles.
In light of what is happening in our city, our home, I wonder if we imagine a world where fear is replaced by curiosity. I wonder if we saw the power in proximity, nearness. I wonder what would happen if those who demand longer borders desired longer tables. As someone who has sat at these tables, my worldview has only become that much deeper, that much richer in the sharing of love, loss, and everything in between over the passing of plates and breaking of bread. Is there an other in humanity?
