Daily Sauntering

Most modern people check their alarm clock before going to bed. The reason, needless to say, is that they must wake up at a set time so the next day’s schedule won’t be disrupted. There’s even a story about an American who, on the day he retired, took his alarm clock to the riverbank and threw it away because he no longer wanted to remember the days when he had to wake up to it every single morning.

An alarm is not only for waking us from deep sleep. Humans created alarms as safety devices—for fire prevention, tornado warnings, and alerts for natural disasters. They are one of the indispensable tools of modern civilization, designed to keep us aware and safe.

Some alarms awaken our ears, while others awaken the ears of an era. There are silent alarms that guide the direction of history. These sounds, inaudible to our physical ears, have always existed within society, nations, and the history of humankind.

These days, an alarm is ringing in our immigrant community. On May 1, 1999, Hispanic workers in Lower Manhattan protested low wages, unpaid overtime, and poor working conditions. Their demonstration is a warning siren we cannot simply ignore. The sound may seem faint or insignificant—something we might overlook or pretend not to notice without immediate consequence. Yet this alarm carries the potential to bring disadvantages not only to the entire Korean American community today but also to future generations. We must take it seriously and respond wisely.

According to the 1997 U.S. Census, Hispanics made up 11% of the U.S. population, while Asians accounted for 4%. By 2050, Hispanics are projected to reach 25%, and Asians 8%. The political influence of Hispanics is growing rapidly and visibly. Meanwhile, we must ask ourselves whether we are still wandering in nostalgia for our homeland’s past instead of seeking our place in this multiethnic society.

America’s strength lies in its diversity. But when that strength weakens or becomes fragmented, hostility toward certain groups can grow, turning the nation into a potential powder keg of racial conflict. Racial hatred has a dark history—most notably the murder of six million Jews. Even now, in Kosovo, the ethnic cleansing of Albanians by Yugoslav forces is creating orphans, homeless families, and separated loved ones overnight.

Racial hatred toward minorities and Asians is also rising online. On May 2, in Bergenfield, New Jersey, 184 gravestones in a Korean church cemetery were vandalized. The dead cannot speak, yet their heavy 1,000–1,500-pound gravestones were mercilessly toppled and destroyed. According to the Asian American hate crime report released by the Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium in Washington, D.C., the number of victims rose from 23 the previous year to over 70—more than triple.

Jews call themselves a minority. But in reality, their political, economic, and cultural influence in the United States is far from that of a small group. According to 1990 statistics, about 6.84 million Jews live in the U.S., and about 14.5 million worldwide. Yet they make up 20% of American lawyers—140,000 people. Twenty-three percent of the 400 wealthiest Americans are Jewish. Ten percent of U.S. congressional members are Jewish. Between 25% and 35% of university professors are Jewish. They hold 90% of top administrative positions at elite universities. They lead in film, culture, and many other fields. What explains this remarkable success?

Their excellence is rooted in education. They invest heavily in learning and research—not merely for personal prosperity, but for the advancement of humanity.

They continue to cultivate barren ground and move toward the conquest of Canaan, believing that their Exodus story is not a closed chapter of the past but an ongoing journey. They teach their descendants that Moses and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. stand together at the door of history, leading people out of bondage. They believe this deeply. It is astonishing that they consistently remind themselves that the human rights movements of Moses and Dr. King are ultimately of the same nature.

— Yoon Wan-Hee, 5/15/1999