Posts Tagged ‘Refugees’
Listening to Our Better Angels
“I have always thought of Christmas as a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time.” – Fred, the nephew of Ebenezer Scrooge in Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol With the holiday season once again upon us, Americans from all walks of life – and every race, creed, and religion – become observers, and in many cases, active…
Read MoreA “Timeless” Tribute to the Korean War
In one of the most unlikely events of holiday primetime television, the writers of “Timeless,” a science fiction drama series with a following of millions, showcased the Korean War’s Hungnam Evacuation. The show’s final episode, which aired on December 20 and highlighted the little-known military and humanitarian operation, became the talk of the town on…
Read MoreA Christmas Miracle
Thousands of refugees, huddled at the water’s edge and anxiously waiting to board American ships, knew what would happen if they were left behind. The Chinese, massing in the nearby mountains, would storm into Hungnam and make an example of anyone who had defied them. US and ROK collaborators, Christians, anti-communists, and anyone deemed a…
Read MoreAn Eternal Brotherhood
On a cold, starless night deep in the snow-covered mountains of North Korea, John Lee, a Korean interpreter with 1st Marine Division, watched as about twenty people cautiously entered a small building. Worried that the suspicious-looking North Korean civilians might be communist sympathizers plotting to infiltrate American units at Chosin, he made his way silently…
Read MoreGreat Sacrifice Can Produce Great Results
This weekend as Americans enjoy cookouts, beach reading, shopping sprees, blockbuster movie openings, and good times with family and friends, many of us will also take time to remember America’s military men and women who died in defense of our freedom. It is, after all, Memorial Day Weekend. But there’s another group of Americans, far from home…
Read MoreMen of the Merchant Marine: Unsung Heroes of the Korean War
As the elderly American, surrounded by cameras, microphones, and reporters, walked towards the memorial, two Korean men stepped forward from the crowd. As if on cue, the sea of people suddenly parted, and the three men shook hands, their warm smiles and contagious laughs drawing everyone’s attention. It was a magical moment, one that words and pictures…
Read MoreShe Eats, Sleeps, and Fights Like the Rest of Us
In a few weeks the 67th publication anniversary of a little-known Korean War book will quietly come and go. The non-fiction work won’t make headlines, and its author won’t be remembered in editorials or magazines. But things were different in 1951. The book, War in Korea, and its author, the award-winning Marguerite Higgins, were hugely…
Read MoreHonoring the Past
They’re a loyal, fun-loving bunch. The former North Korean refugees, men now in their seventies and eighties, get together four times a year to have dinner, reminisce, sing, and give thanks for the opportunity to live in a free, democratic country. It all started five years ago when, on a whim, a few members of…
Read MorePlanes, Presidents, and Presentations – A Look Back at 2017
Nearly eight months ago, on May 11, 2017, I posted my first blog. I had written an article the day before for the Korea Times, Moon Jae-in: From Geoje to Cheong Wa Dae, with my reflections on the newly elected president of South Korea, and the blog reiterated some of the points I’d mentioned in…
Read MoreThe Kimchi Babies
At some point during the early stages of SS Meredith Victory’s December 22-25, 1950, voyage from Hungnam, North Korea, to Geoje Island, South Korea, a baby was born. The ship’s crew was astounded. The men had never dreamed that a baby would be delivered on a Victory ship, certainly not theirs. But with 14,000 refugees…
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