Teacher Guide

Lesson 1: The Korean Diaspora and Korean Americans

  1. Teacher Guide
  2. Alignment with California Content Standards
  3. Activity 2: Where Was the First Koreatown and Who Was Dosan Ahn Chang Ho?
  4. Assessments
  5. Extension: Civic Engagement Support

  1. Teacher Guide
  2. Alignment with California Content Standards
  3. Activity 3.1: Who is Sammy Lee? What was the Immigrant Experience of his Family?
  4. Activity 3.2: How did U.S. Immigration Laws shape Sammy Lee’s Life?
  5. Assessments
  6. Extension: Literature and Writing Extension: Book Reviews and Storytelling

  1. Teacher Guide
  2. Alignment with California Content Standards
  3. Activity 4.1: How was the Korean Independence Movement Impacted by Wilson’s Fourteen Points?
  4. Activity 4.2: How did the Korean Independence Movement shape and become shaped by Formation of the Korean American Identity in the United States?
  5. Assessments
  6. Extension: Writing Extensions

  1. Teacher Guide
  2. Alignment with California Content Standards
  3. Activity 5.1: Who was the First Asian American to Command a U.S. Battalion?
  4. ​Activity 5.2: How is Colonel Young Oak Kim an Unsung Hero?
  5. Assessment & Extensions:: Argumentative Essay

  1. Teacher Guide
  2. Alignment with California Content Standards
  3. Activity 6.1: Aftermath of the Korean War
  4. Activity 6.2: ​Korean War Orphans
  5. Activity 6.3: ​Experiences of Korean Transnational Adoptees
  6. Assessment
  7. Extensions

  1. Teacher Guide
  2. Alignment with California Content Standards
  3. Activity 7.1: A Cry for Justice
  4. Activity 7.2: Experiences of Korean Americans during the 1992 LA Civil Unrest
  5. Activity 7.3: The Legacy of Saigu
  6. Assessment
  7. Extention: Research Project
  8. Extention: Research Project Supplemental

  1. Teacher Guide
  2. Alignment with California Content Standards
  3. Activity 8.1: Hallyu and K-Pop: A Global Phenomenon
  4. Activity 8.2: Oscar Winners: A Closer Look at Minari
  5. Activity 8.3: Korean Americans Past, Present, and Future
  6. Music Video Resources
  7. Assessment & Extension

Lesson 7: Saigu: The 1992 LA Civil Unrest

Aftermath.
(Source: From the film, SA-I-GU: From Korean Women’s Perspectives, Center for Asian American Media) [2022 marks 30th Anniversary of LA Civil Unrest]

Lesson Features

    • TOPICS: Saigu, 1992 LA Civil Unrest, justice and injustice
    • HISTORICAL TIMEFRAME: 1990 – 2020
    • SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT: Causes/Effects Graphic Organizer
    • LITERATURE AND WRITING EXTENSION: Autobiographical Essay

Lesson Overview

    • Students are introduced to 1992 LA Civil Unrest and how it impacted Korean Americans. They reflect upon and critically analyze the responses of various individuals and groups to the unrest, examine issues of justice, and consider the legacy of Saigu for Korean Americans today.

Timeframe

    • There are three activities in this lesson. Each activity requires approximately 55 minutes and includes homework.
    • The Summative Assessment Causes/Effects Graphic Organizer will also require at least one 55-minute period.

Objectives and Learning Goals

    • Students will be able to explain the causes and effects of the 1992 LA Civil Unrest.
    • Students will be able to identify instances of justice and injustice for different individuals and groups during the 1992 LA Civil Unrest.
    • Students will be able to define concepts in interethnic relations/studies through the lens of the “Black-Korean conflict,” and identify how these concepts are contextualized within current events.
    • Students will be able to identify examples of current racial tensions that may derive from the 1992 LA Civil Unrest.
    • Students will be able to analyze the Legacy of Saigu.

Vocabulary

    • Advocate – a person who publicly supports or recommends a particular cause or policy.
    • Black-Korean Conflict – negative interactions between Korean merchants and Black consumers in urban communities. The nature of this conflict has resulted in anti-Asian sentiments and angry attitudes that have escalated the conflict to boycotts of Korean business interests, beatings due to mistaken identities, deaths of merchants and consumers and, in the case of the 1992 urban uprisings in Los Angeles, looting and burning of targeted-Korean businesses.
    • Civil unrest – acts of violence and disorder detrimental to public law and order.
    • Economic disparity – unequal distribution of wealth and opportunity.
    • Injustice – an unjust act or occurrence; lack of fairness or justice.
    • Justice – just behavior or treatment.
    • Marginalized people – groups or communities experiencing discrimination and exclusion within society.
    • Riot – a violent disturbance of the peace by a crowd; a form of civil unrest.
    • Solidarity – a sense of unity and community based on shared or common interests, goals, ideology, or beliefs.
    • Uprising – the act of resistance.

Original Resource

    • Chang, E. & Cho, G. (2022). Saigu & Social Justice. In G. Cho & V. Costa (Eds.). Korean American Ethnic Studies Curriculum: Teaching Resource Materials for K-12 Classrooms (pp.321-381). Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in Los Angeles.

Lesson 7 Presentation (PDF)

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