National Korean American Service & Education Consortium
Encyclopedia
The National Korean American Service & Education Consortium (NAKASEC, and 미주한인봉사교육단체협의회 or 미교협 in Korean
)is a national service, advocacy and education organization for two non-profit multi-issue grassroots
local community centers: the Korean American Resource & Cultural Center in Chicago and the Korean Resource Center in Los Angeles. NAKASEC is based in Los Angeles and a D.C. office opened in late 2008.
NAKASEC was founded in 1994 by local community centers to project a national progressive voice and promote the full participation of Korean Americans as a part of a greater goal of building a national movement for social change. NAKASEC was one of the major players in the Korean American community during the restoration movement after the welfare reform of 1996
through the "Fix '96 Campaign" and continues to be active in the immigration reform
debate.
's military leadership crushed the Gwangju People's Uprising in May 1980. From the onset, the center set as its goals the delivery of social services, community education, rights advocacy, and preservation and enrichment of traditional cultures and work on identity. During the 80's the center focused its advocacy in solidarity work with the democratization movement of South Korea, exposing grave human rights violations committed by the Chun regime. Because of its open challenge to the then dictatorial state of South Korea, KRC was a target of covert repression and kidnap attempts by the KCIA and the Korean Consulate.
With the Los Angeles Civil Unrest of 1992 and the anti-immigrant wave that swept across California with Proposition 187
in 1994, KRC steered its direction to issues of the Korean American community in Los Angeles, particularly around political education, civil rights and the defense of immigrant rights. In 1994, KRC and other sister centers across the United States, including YKASEC in New York
and KRCC in Chicago
, founded the National Korean American Service and Education Consortium (NAKASEC, 미주한인봉사교육단체협의회), a national civil rights organization with a progressive Korean American agenda.
Under the leadership of NAKASEC, centers fought against Proposition 187, held community education on issues of race, and formed a broad coalition in the Korean American community against the Welfare Reform of 1996
. Through a community fundraiser involving thousands of individuals, a full-page ad was posted in the Washington Post in 1997 demanding the president to end the attack on immigrants, and a campaign to restore welfare benefits for immigrants was launched in the late 90's, winning back various benefits for lawful permanent residents and other immigrants. Many Korean American seniors became politicized during this struggle for benefits.
NAKASEC coordinated a national 2-week fast for the passage of the DREAM Act
in 2004 with the participation of 700 individuals, and held a summer community fundraising campaign, gaining the monetary contribution of 14,000 individuals, to post a full-page ad in the New York Times and Washington Post urging the American public to support comprehensive immigration reform based on the principles of legalization of undocumented immigrants, an end to measures that prevented many families to be together, and the defense of workers' rights and civil rights
& liberties.
) is a non-profit multi-issue, multi-mode grassroots
organization based in Koreatown
, Los Angeles
that works with the Korean American
, immigrant and low-income people of color communities of Los Angeles. It was one of the major players in the Korean American community during the restoration movement after the welfare reform of 1996
through the "Fix '96 Campaign" and more recently in issues of access to health services and immigration reform
.
During the late 90's and early 2000s KRC diversified its rights advocacy component into specialized programs that addressed health
, immigrant rights and voting rights. KRC was part of the March 25th Marches with a million protestors in downtown Los Angeles as well as other protests. NAKASEC joined other labor, faith, and rights organizations in Southern California to form the We Are America Coalition, which mobilized hundreds of thousands of immigrants and allies in the May Day March.
KRC has traditionally been supported by the Korean American community in its entirety and relied on small size individual donations, sales of used cans and garage sales to sustain its programs. A recent trend has been to rely more on foundation grants, but its tradition of community support is alive in its campaign fundraisers as well as its continuance of can and garage sales.
as well as Medi-Cal
, low-income legal and tax services, naturalization
, etc. Many seniors are active in all of KRC's components.
KRC runs its own poongmul troupe, called HanNuRi (traditional Korean peasant percussion music), and educates the community through its poongmul classes. KRC's poongmul troupe has become renowned in the activist community through its performance in rallies and cultural events.
Korean language
Korean is the official language of the country Korea, in both South and North. It is also one of the two official languages in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in People's Republic of China. There are about 78 million Korean speakers worldwide. In the 15th century, a national writing...
)is a national service, advocacy and education organization for two non-profit multi-issue grassroots
Grassroots
A grassroots movement is one driven by the politics of a community. The term implies that the creation of the movement and the group supporting it are natural and spontaneous, highlighting the differences between this and a movement that is orchestrated by traditional power structures...
local community centers: the Korean American Resource & Cultural Center in Chicago and the Korean Resource Center in Los Angeles. NAKASEC is based in Los Angeles and a D.C. office opened in late 2008.
NAKASEC was founded in 1994 by local community centers to project a national progressive voice and promote the full participation of Korean Americans as a part of a greater goal of building a national movement for social change. NAKASEC was one of the major players in the Korean American community during the restoration movement after the welfare reform of 1996
Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act
The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 is a United States federal law considered to be a fundamental shift in both the method and goal of federal cash assistance to the poor. The bill added a workforce development component to welfare legislation, encouraging...
through the "Fix '96 Campaign" and continues to be active in the immigration reform
Immigration reform
Immigration reform is a term used in political discussion regarding changes to current immigration policy of a country. In its strict definition, "reform " means to change into an improved form or condition, by amending or removing faults or abuses....
debate.
History
KRC along with other centers in Seattle, Washington, DC, Houston and other cities, were established in the early 1980s by political activists who escaped South Korea after Chun Doo-hwanChun Doo-hwan
Chun Doo-hwan was a ROK Army general and the President of South Korea from 1980 to 1988. Chun was sentenced to death in 1996 for his heavy-handed response to the Gwangju Democratization Movement, but later pardoned by President Kim Young-sam with the advice of then President-elect Kim Dae-jung,...
's military leadership crushed the Gwangju People's Uprising in May 1980. From the onset, the center set as its goals the delivery of social services, community education, rights advocacy, and preservation and enrichment of traditional cultures and work on identity. During the 80's the center focused its advocacy in solidarity work with the democratization movement of South Korea, exposing grave human rights violations committed by the Chun regime. Because of its open challenge to the then dictatorial state of South Korea, KRC was a target of covert repression and kidnap attempts by the KCIA and the Korean Consulate.
With the Los Angeles Civil Unrest of 1992 and the anti-immigrant wave that swept across California with Proposition 187
California Proposition 187 (1994)
California Proposition 187 was a 1994 ballot initiative to establish a state-run citizenship screening system and prohibit illegal aliens from using health care, public education, and other social services in the U.S. State of California...
in 1994, KRC steered its direction to issues of the Korean American community in Los Angeles, particularly around political education, civil rights and the defense of immigrant rights. In 1994, KRC and other sister centers across the United States, including YKASEC in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and KRCC in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, founded the National Korean American Service and Education Consortium (NAKASEC, 미주한인봉사교육단체협의회), a national civil rights organization with a progressive Korean American agenda.
Under the leadership of NAKASEC, centers fought against Proposition 187, held community education on issues of race, and formed a broad coalition in the Korean American community against the Welfare Reform of 1996
Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act
The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 is a United States federal law considered to be a fundamental shift in both the method and goal of federal cash assistance to the poor. The bill added a workforce development component to welfare legislation, encouraging...
. Through a community fundraiser involving thousands of individuals, a full-page ad was posted in the Washington Post in 1997 demanding the president to end the attack on immigrants, and a campaign to restore welfare benefits for immigrants was launched in the late 90's, winning back various benefits for lawful permanent residents and other immigrants. Many Korean American seniors became politicized during this struggle for benefits.
NAKASEC coordinated a national 2-week fast for the passage of the DREAM Act
DREAM Act
The DREAM Act is an American legislative proposal first introduced in the Senate on August 1, 2001 and most recently reintroduced there on May 11, 2011....
in 2004 with the participation of 700 individuals, and held a summer community fundraising campaign, gaining the monetary contribution of 14,000 individuals, to post a full-page ad in the New York Times and Washington Post urging the American public to support comprehensive immigration reform based on the principles of legalization of undocumented immigrants, an end to measures that prevented many families to be together, and the defense of workers' rights and civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
& liberties.
Korean American Resource & Cultural Center
The Korean American Resource & Cultural Center (KRCC for short, and 한인교육문화 마당집 or 마당집 in Korean) was founded in March 1995. KRCC has a strong youth program and leadership has worked broadly in a multi-racial and multi-ethnic environment. KRCC is member of a number of local coalitions, including the Coalition of Asian, African, Arab, European and Latino Immigrants of Illinois and the Illinois Coalition of Immigrant and Refugee Rights.Korean Resource Center
The Korean Resource Center (KRC for short, and 민족학교 in KoreanKorean language
Korean is the official language of the country Korea, in both South and North. It is also one of the two official languages in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in People's Republic of China. There are about 78 million Korean speakers worldwide. In the 15th century, a national writing...
) is a non-profit multi-issue, multi-mode grassroots
Grassroots
A grassroots movement is one driven by the politics of a community. The term implies that the creation of the movement and the group supporting it are natural and spontaneous, highlighting the differences between this and a movement that is orchestrated by traditional power structures...
organization based in Koreatown
Koreatown
Koreatown is a term to describe a Korean ethnic enclave within a city or metropolitan area. Similar terms may include Little Seoul or Little Korea.-Beijing:There are more than 150,000 Koreans living in Beijing...
, Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
that works with the Korean American
Korean American
Korean Americans are Americans of Korean descent, mostly from South Korea, with a small minority from North Korea...
, immigrant and low-income people of color communities of Los Angeles. It was one of the major players in the Korean American community during the restoration movement after the welfare reform of 1996
Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act
The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 is a United States federal law considered to be a fundamental shift in both the method and goal of federal cash assistance to the poor. The bill added a workforce development component to welfare legislation, encouraging...
through the "Fix '96 Campaign" and more recently in issues of access to health services and immigration reform
Immigration reform
Immigration reform is a term used in political discussion regarding changes to current immigration policy of a country. In its strict definition, "reform " means to change into an improved form or condition, by amending or removing faults or abuses....
.
During the late 90's and early 2000s KRC diversified its rights advocacy component into specialized programs that addressed health
Health
Health is the level of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living being. In humans, it is the general condition of a person's mind, body and spirit, usually meaning to be free from illness, injury or pain...
, immigrant rights and voting rights. KRC was part of the March 25th Marches with a million protestors in downtown Los Angeles as well as other protests. NAKASEC joined other labor, faith, and rights organizations in Southern California to form the We Are America Coalition, which mobilized hundreds of thousands of immigrants and allies in the May Day March.
KRC has traditionally been supported by the Korean American community in its entirety and relied on small size individual donations, sales of used cans and garage sales to sustain its programs. A recent trend has been to rely more on foundation grants, but its tradition of community support is alive in its campaign fundraisers as well as its continuance of can and garage sales.
Community Groups
KRC has a very strong and large senior age base because of its work with welfare rights and social services. KRC's anniversary booklet claims that KRC served over 5,000 Korean Americans free of charge during 2006, mostly through education and enrollment of Medicare Part DMedicare Part D
Medicare Part D is a federal program to subsidize the costs of prescription drugs for Medicare beneficiaries in the United States. It was enacted as part of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 and went into effect on January 1, 2006.- Eligibility and...
as well as Medi-Cal
Medi-Cal
The California Medical Assistance Program is the name of the California Medicaid program serving low-income families, seniors, persons with disabilities, children in foster care, pregnant women, and certain low-income adults...
, low-income legal and tax services, naturalization
Naturalization
Naturalization is the acquisition of citizenship and nationality by somebody who was not a citizen of that country at the time of birth....
, etc. Many seniors are active in all of KRC's components.
KRC runs its own poongmul troupe, called HanNuRi (traditional Korean peasant percussion music), and educates the community through its poongmul classes. KRC's poongmul troupe has become renowned in the activist community through its performance in rallies and cultural events.