Washington, DC – U.S. Representative Young Kim (CA-39), one of the first Korean American women to serve in Congress, helped introduce a bipartisan bill to help reunite Korean Americans with their family members in North Korea.
Rep. Kim joined Reps. Grace Meng (NY-06) and Van Taylor (TX-03) to introduce the bipartisan Divided Families Reunification Act (H.R. 826), which would require the Secretary of State and the U.S. Special Envoy on North Korea Human Rights Issues to prioritize helping divided Korean American families reunite with their loved ones in North Korea.
As a Korean American, Rep. Kim has long fought for Korean Americans to be able to reunite with family members since before her time in Congress.
“The South and North Korean governments have facilitated 21 reunions and 7 video reunions since they began implementing family reunions in 1985. Unfortunately, the estimated 100,000 Korean Americans with family members in North Korea have been left out of this process entirely. As a Korean American, I understand and have great empathy over the continued separation of Korean Americans from their war-torn families in North Korea. I am proud to join this bipartisan effort to right this wrong and allow Korean Americans to visit their family members in North Korea,” said Kim.
