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Korea: Mi Sook Kim
by Nikki Tundel, Minnesota Public Radio
May 15, 2005

Mi Sook Kim moved to the U.S. with her husband and two children in 1991. (MPR Photo/Nikki Tundel)

St. Paul, Minn. — Mi Sook Kim, 41, is originally from Seoul, Korea. She and her family moved to the United States in 1991, because her husband wanted to immigrate here.

In Korea, they were in the middle class. Her husband was running a publishing business and she was a full time housewife. Kim says in Korea, the husband's income is enough to cover the family's expenses, but in the U.S. both have had to work. Finding a job is very hard here.

Her husband is a carpenter, remodeling houses. She works at the Korean Service Center.

Kim says the cultural differences are still quite apparent, even after 14 years in the U.S. In school, she says her children are sometimes kept at lunch because they don't like the school lunch food.

In Korea, people are approached very indirectly, and here things are very direct. There is more confrontation here. She thinks her children have faced embarrassment many times because of this.

Kim says the biggest surprise about moving here was that she expected a luxurious life, because America is such a rich country. What she found is that people are working very hard here, but she likes that.

Kim says she wishes Americans would have more understanding of different cultures. For example, Kim says, "we eat differently, so we smell differently. Americans smell like cheese. And Americans smell like garlic. It's just different. One isn't superior or inferior. Also, when we speak English, we have an accent. It's not easy to learn English. So be patient."