Seoul Train

My wife just came back from spending a couple weeks in Korea. I pick her up from the airport and we arrive home late. It was past my son’s bedtime so she only got to give him a kiss as he slept. This morning when my wife woke up and reunited with our awake son we had a great time playing as son was more cheerful than usual. We had breakfast with Bill Moyers interviewing Dr. Jim Young Kim in the background. Given the similarity of his name to mine, it perked my interested and I listened intently to this interview. I was inspired by his wish to show the “young people” at Dartmouth that individuals can make a difference in the world. With this thought in my mind, I was unexpectedly blown away by Seoul Train.

Seoul Train is a documentary about the plight of North Korean refugees attempting to escape to/via China. For North Koreans, China itself is a nightmare. Even so, these North Koreans are so desperate and feel so hopeless about their future in their homeland that they risk the incredibly treacherous escape through China. With my wife and son playing by my side, I felt blindsided by this film. The one-two combination of Dr. Kim telling me that individuals can make a difference and seeing the incredible story the refugees and the activist that help them was more than I could handle.

How can I help?! I don’t know but figuring that out just made it into my top five list of things to do.