The Attachment of Twice-Migrant Koreans from China to Korean Immigrants and South Korea

• In Event: 242 - Section on International Migration Roundtable Session (one-hour).
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 10. Global Migrant Circuits

Abstract

This paper examines the ethnic attachment of New York City twice-migrant Koreans from China (Chosunjok) to Korean immigrants and South Korea, using personal interviews and census data. The informants maintain a high level of cultural ethnic attachment, although their Korean language and food are significantly different from those used and consumed by Korean immigrants. But they have little social attachment either to Korean immigrants, or to Chinese immigrants. They have strong social attachment to members of their own subgroup. They have strong ethnic identity, but it is very different from Korean immigrants’ ethnic identity focusing on their homeland of South Korea. They identify themselves with a Chosunjok minority in China. They consider their ancestral homeland as Choun (the last Korean dynasty before Korea was divided into two halves) or the Korean peninsula, rather than South Korea. The predominant majority of the informants would cheer for the Chinese team in a hypothetical soccer game between the Korea and Chinese teams, reflecting their strong loyalty to China and no loyalty to Korea. Despite their low social ties to Korea and low loyalty to Korea, the authors suggest, under the impact of racialization in the U.S. their children and grand-children are likely to maintain stronger social ties to Korean Americans and to be more loyal to South Korea as their homeland.

Author

• Pyong Gap Min, City University of New York-Queens College