L to R: Dad, Mom, Seong Young Sohn (Professor), Dr. Young Rae Kim (President), me.

What an honor it was to be invited to screen A Lot Like You at Dongduk Women’s University in Seoul, South Korea.  Having this conversation about gender violence and the mixed-race experience in other parts of the world is opening new doors for me, and giving me a better understanding of what it means to be a “global citizen”.

Seeing how these issues are framed and discussed, experiencing this story through a different cultural lens, I’m aware of how universal the experience of gender violence is, and can appreciate how deeply our cultural perspectives inform our understanding of everything from oppression and violence to the multiracial experience.  

While language was a barrier, the Q&A that followed showed that the students had absorbed enough of our story to engage fully with the issues explored in the film.

One student commented on how my cultural insider/outsider status granted me access to my family and their stories.  But she wondered how she, as a Korean, would be received if she was to travel to Tanzania and try to contribute meaningfully to lives of women and girls there.  

I briefly shared my perspective, as an American, then pointed out that Mom and Dad (who were in the audience) could better speak to how Tanzanians would receive such an offer.  So amidst a series of gasps and claps, I asked Mom and Dad to join me for the Q&A.  

And so now, I’m working on a bigger piece that reflects on:
– the global response to our film and the conversations it evokes, and
– the questions this film is bringing up for my family now.  
Folded into this piece will be Mom and Dad’s response to the question above.  I promise.

But I just wanted to share how amazing it was to have my parents with me to talk about the film!  Mom and I have done a few Q&A’s in Seattle and across Tanzania.  But this was the first time I’ve done a Q&A with my Dad.  And I must say, I do love him dearly for all the ways he continues to show up for me in support of this film…