Activity 7.2: Experiences of Korean Americans during the 1992 LA Civil Unrest

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

Activity 7.2: Experiences of Korean Americans during the 1992 LA Civil Unrest

 

​Using interviews of Korean Americans who were part of the 1992 LA Riots, students explore the impact of the 1992 Los Angeles Civil Unrest by analyzing interviews of individuals who were part of it. 

Korean American Story. (Source: Logo of KoreanAmericanStory.com) The Legacy Project is an oral history project of KoreanAmericanStory.org. The concept of the Legacy Project is to provide the Korean American community an easy turnkey process to capture the stories of individuals and families through video recordings.

Activity Questions

  • How were Korean Americans (both those who lived during the event and those who have been born since) impacted by the 1992 Civil Unrest?
  • What are similarities and differences between these experiences?
  • What did they see as some of the causes of the 1992 Civil Unrest?
  • What impact was felt in the Korean American Community?
  • What impacts were felt by other groups (i.e., LAPD, African American population, Latino/Hispanic population, etc.)?

Instructional Strategies

  • Use the Lesson 7: Saigu – The 1992 LA Civil Unrest presentation to support this lesson.

Before the Video

  • Introduce the Legacy Project website.

During the Video

  • Distribute the Legacy Project Video Activity and have students complete the column for the interview you show to the whole class.
  • Show the video, Saigu LA Riots – Hyepin Im, or an alternative video(s) selected from the Legacy Project.

After Viewing

  • Have students use their devices to select a second interview to view and complete the second column.
  • Invite students to share their analysis with a peer, small group, or whole class

to identify similarities and differences between interviewee experiences and ideas.   Closing Activity

  • End class with review and discussion of the activity questions and how the April’s Way film reshaped or reinforced their answers.

Resources

Worksheet on Legacy Project Activity: Impact of 1992 Civil Unrest (PDF)

YouTube Video: Sa-I-Gu (41 minutes)