By Angela Montefinise

When James Kim, the secretary general of the Korean American Association of Flushing, first moved to Queens in 1984, he said he was immediately struck by the way he felt “right at home” and was able to find “opportunities that just weren’t there in Korea.”

He mentioned how the military government in his native country had “made life difficult” for Korean people, and “once the government made visas easier to get, America seemed like a perfect place to go . . . The Korean people have done well in Queens, which has offered them a tremendous amount. The largest concentration of Koreans in the United States is in Flushing, I believe . . . This place has truly become a second home for Koreans.”

The borough’s Korean population, which Kim estimated first arrived in Queens in 1965, is now the third largest Asian group in Queens behind Asian Indians and the Chinese, according to the United States Census, which counted 62,130 Koreans in 2000.

Kim said the first Koreans who came to Queens stayed in Sunnyside, Jackson Heights, and Elmhurst, but have now moved into Flushing, Bayside, Douglaston, Little Neck and Nassau County.

The Koreans residing in Queens are “almost entirely from South Korea,” according to Kwang Kim, president of the Korean American Association of Queens, who said, “North Koreans still can’t get here . . . The Communist government doesn’t let them, you know.”

James Kim said, “When Koreans first came here, they needed to be near Manhattan where they worked. As they saved more money, they wanted to buy homes and settle down in areas that are more residential.” He added, “Many Koreans came and opened their own businesses. We’ve succeeded here, and hopefully we will continue to succeed.”

Since then, Koreans have had to overcome the obstacles of their militaristic government and Kwang Kim said, “That’s why there were very little Koreans in Queens until the eighties.”

However, more Koreans started coming to Queens in the sixties and Kwang Kim said, “There were not many. It was hard . . . The ones that did tried to open businesses.”

James Kim explained, “There was a class of low income people who wanted to leave Korea and the dictatorship there and make money. They realized that by opening groceries and fish stores, they would make money.”

Many of the Koreans, James Kim said, opened shops in Western Queens and Manhattan, and “Most Koreans lived in Sunnyside. It was close to the subway, which was the main concern at that point.” He added, “It was hard for them because they didn’t know English, so they moved together in a group. Their businesses were successful, they supported each other, and they slowly began to move up in the world . . . Eventually, they moved out of Western Queens, and into Flushing, where there was even more opportunity.”

In the 1970s, during a time of financial crisis for the United States, Flushing was “pretty empty,” according to Kwang Kim. “Chinese students were buying shops there for little money.”

Kwang Kim said the Koreans followed, and bought shops on Northern Boulevard in Flushing.

Bernadette Li, a professor of Asian Studies at St. John’s University, said, “The Koreans needed transportation into the City, just like the Chinese. But the Chinese were in Flushing first, so the Koreans had to rent the apartments and shops a little further from downtown, on Northern.”

Still, the number of Koreans in Flushing didn’t grow dramatically until 1982, Kwang Kim said, when a new government came to Korea and military generals became presidents.

James Kim explained, “The dictatorship wasn’t completely gone. The military generals were still in charge, so the low income people still wanted to find new opportunities in America . . . Visas were easier to get, though, so Koreans came here in large numbers.”

Signs of the times — Korean language business signs on Union Street in Flushing, where a thriving Korean community resides. Tribune Photo by Ira Cohen

Kwang Kim said that Koreans moved to Flushing because “the culture was there.” There were already Korean restaurants, shops, stores and churches set up in the area, making a transition easier for Korean immigrants.

Li added that there were jobs there for Koreans in restaurants and stores, and opportunities for business development.

James Kim said, “Many Korean businesses opened in Flushing . . . There are still Koreans in Sunnyside and Western Queens, but now, Koreans mostly move to Flushing. That’s where most of us are.”

In 1997, Korea had an economic crisis, which Kwang Kim said was foreshadowed in 1995. “Most Korean business people saw it coming, and put their money and business overseas.”

Flushing was a profitable business center, he said, and many Koreans escaping the fiscal crisis invested in it, creating “an increase in Korean stores in Flushing in the 1990s.”

However, he noted that Koreans generally don’t work in partnerships. “The Chinese use partnerships in business. Many of them invest in one thing, or different companies come together. Koreans don’t do that. They’re more individual.”

As individual Koreans became wealthier, Kwang Kim said they started to move out of Flushing and into Bayside, Douglaston and Little Neck. “Koreans don’t like to own their stores like the Chinese. They like to rent their stores and own a home and buy a car. So once the Koreans made money, they moved out of Flushing and into other areas . . . The Chinese have done the same, but in different ways.”

Kwang Kim said much of the Korean lifestyle surrounds education and the church. “Many Koreans are very dedicated [to the church]. They meet each other there, and congregations become communities.” An increase in the number of churches in Little Neck and Douglaston show an increase in Koreans in the area, Kim said, and he added, “The church is very important to Koreans . . . It’s a major part of life.”

Education is also very important, according to Kim, who said, “Koreans always focus on learning . . . In Korea, the military did not allow as much learning. Here, it is very important.”

Although many Korean businesses in downtown Flushing are thriving, Kwang Kim said many only try to attract Korean customers, and he said, “The Asian population is growing and [there are] so many Chinese and Korean stores in [the] Flushing area, but many of the stores, they target Korean customers only. In [the] future, this is bad for their business.” Kim pointed out that many Korean businesses do not have English on their signs, which is against the law, and said, “They don’t know how to fix that.”

In an effort to help Korean businesses correct their signs before getting summonses from the Buildings Department, the Flushing Community Development Center – which Kim is a member of – kicked off a campaign in October called the First Sign Project Fund, which uses $39,073 in Economic Development Corporation funds provided by State Senator Frank Padavan to help Korean businesses bring their signs up to code.

Kim said the campaign will start with 35 Korean businesses on Northern Boulevard and Union Street, and said, “Most Korean businesses we’ve spoken to are for this. They support it to [improve] business . . . This is a good first step to helping Korean businesses grow.”

James Kim said Koreans continue to come into Flushing, and he said, “Flushing had more Koreans than Chinese for a while, but now a large Chinese population has moved in, and a lot of Koreans are leaving at the same time.” He added, “Koreans are still coming to Flushing, but more are going to Eastern Queens, the Island and New Jersey.”

He added, “Relations between [South] Korean and the United States are fairly good, so Koreans feel welcome here. I think they’ll still come for many years.”