Picture Show

Offering a glimpse into almost a century of Korean history in the United States, “Generations: The Korean American Experience,” a black-and-white photographic exhibit, is on display at Koreatown Plaza.

Sponsored by the Korean American Museum, the exhibit is divided into “Gateways,” which offers a historical perspective on Korean American culture; “Activism and Leadership,” which includes photographs from the U.S. movement for Korean independence from Japan as well as modern-day community activism, and “Generations,” which looks into everyday Korean American family life.

The exhibition also features videotaped interviews of first-generation Korean immigrants, conducted by their second-generation Korean American children.

Most of the photos have been donated from private family collections, said Susan Yang, executive secretary of the museum. Yang said Koreans have been settling in this country since as early as 1902.

Some of the most haunting images in the exhibit involve the deportation of Korean immigrants early in this century when strict immigration laws were applied to Asians, Yang said. A 1938 newspaper photo captures the deportation of a 4-year-old boy who was being sent to Korea because of his father’s immigrant status. The boy’s Brooklyn-born mother consequently opted to forfeit her U.S. citizenship and moved to Korea to live with her husband and son.

“When my parents came here in the late ‘50s, they were tested for literacy and could only bring $300 with them,” Yang said. “Immigration laws became more lenient after the mid ‘60s.”

“Generations: The Korean American Experience,” Koreatown Plaza, 928 S. Western Ave.; through Sept. 23; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday; free; (213) 388-4229