Tales of five Korean Americans who ran for US Congress in 2020

Korean American residents of Los Angeles gather in front of burnt down stores in the wake of the LA riots on April 29, 1992. Korea Times file

Documentary "Chosen" tells stories of Korean Americans of different political stripes who yearn for representation in US politics

By Lee Yeon-woo

Joseph Juhn's 2022 documentary, "Chosen," tells the stories of five Korean Americans who ran for U.S. Congress in 2020. The documentary tries to untangle the motives behind their pursuit of American politics.

The five are Young Kim, Andy Kim, Michelle Park Steel, Marilyn Strickland and David Kim. Four of them, except David Kim, successfully entered U.S. politics.

"Chosen" zooms in on when and how Korean Americans came to take representation seriously.

Rep. Young Kim, a Republican representative of California's 39th district, pointed to the tragic L.A. riots in 1992 as a watershed event that triggered Korean Americans to think that they need representation to make their voice heard in U.S. politics. "Koreans were fighting because the police were not there. That's when our community really woke up and said we need representation," she said.

The L.A. riots, also known in Korea as "sa-i-gu," the numbers that represent the date, April 29, constitute traumatic memories for Southern California's Korean American community. Stores in Koreatown were burnt down or looted while rioters took to the streets to protest the death of Rodney King, a victim of police brutality who was beaten to death during his arrest.

The motives behind Korean Americans running for elected positions vary. Rep. Andy Kim said he came to seek a political career as it was his version of the American dream. "My story as a Korean American story can be fundamentally an American story," he said.

The 2020 elections were the first time that five politicians of Korean descent were running for Congress at the same time.

The five Korean American candidates featured in the documentary, "Chosen," are in a group interview with Juju Chang, co-anchor of ABC News' "Nightline." Screenshot from Diaspora Film's YouTube channel

"The documentary began with my very personal questions. I read a book written by John Bolton, 'The Room Where It Happened.' After reading stories about the Hanoi summit, I wondered one thing. What if Korean American politicians were there?" Juhn said Wednesday after a special screening held in Yeouido, Seoul.

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The Hanoi summit refers to the failed 2019 summit held between then-U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. The two-day summit was abruptly cut short in the middle of the second day as the two leaders presented incompatible demands.

"I just found it offensive. I did reach out to the White House and I told them, 'Why are you doing this?'" Rep. Andy Kim said.

While cross-cutting their personal stories in the film, director Juhn describes how each candidate represents the scars of modern Korean history and their significance in the Korean American community today.

Michelle Park Steel, a Republican representative of California's 48th district, is a first generation who immigrated to the U.S. in 1975 and worked day and night to feed her family. Her parents fled to Busan from North Korea during Korean War.

Marilyn Strickland, a Democrat representative from Washington's 10th district, was born at Yongsan Army Base to a Korean mother and an African American father who served in the military. Her mother was called a "military bride" at the time before eventually accompanying her husband to the U.S.

"You talk about the American dream. My family story is about the American dream," she said.

The documentary mainly follows the trajectory of David Kim, a Democrat who was narrowly defeated in California's 34th district at the time. He is the only one among the five who failed to get elected to Congress in 2020, but who is running again in the 2022 elections. Even though the district covers Los Angeles' Koreatown, he struggled to get support from more conservative members of the Korean American community as a left-leaning progressive Democrat.

David Kim, foreground on left, campaigns in Los Angeles' Koreatown as a Democrat candidate to represent California's 34th district in 2020. Courtesy of Connect Pictures

"David knows I'm a Republican. That my roots are there," David Kim's father, who runs a church in Cupertino, said in the documentary. His parents, who hardly speak any English, said that they pray for the day when David might work for the Republicans.

But their conflict is far more complicated than simply being one of different political ideologies. When David Kim came out to his parents, they tried to exorcize him and even believed that he would die in 72 hours.

Nevertheless, they express pride once in a while that David is running for a seat where he can represent Korean Americans.

"The Korean American community has so many sites of conflict: the generation gap, negative perceptions of sexual minorities, ideological differences, and many more. And all of them can be presented by one person, David Kim. I didn't know he would be my main character before filming this documentary," Juhn said.

Juhn added that he hopes this documentary makes the audience contemplate how we can peacefully coexist despite having ideological differences. The four Korean Americans who were elected to Congress all contributed to passing the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, which reflected the increase of hate crimes against Asian Americans, together in 2021.

When asked what she thinks about the Korean American politicians in the rival party, Michelle Park Steel answers, "The more the merrier. No matter whether you are far-right or far-left. We are Korean Americans. And we can represent our community."

"Chosen" is set to hit local theaters on Nov. 3.