Contributed by Junta Naito
The University of California (UC), Berkeley chapter of CARP Bay Area hosted their second campus impact event for the peaceful reunification of the Korean peninsula focused on “Hope for Resolving Ideological Conflict” on May 5th, 2022 in Berkeley, California. In total, 33 people attended, including those joining virtually.
The program commenced with viewing a short video of CARP members interviewing UC Berkeley students on their thoughts about the reunification of the Korean peninsula and its relevance to Americans, particularly students on campus. Interviewees expressed gratitude for bringing this topic to the forefront, the need to be global citizens, and the importance of sharing more resources.
Following the video, emcee and CARP Berkeley president Junta Naito briefly reviewed points covered in the first campus impact event about Korean history, challenges towards reunification, humanizing the issue, and the need for spiritual renewal.
The first speaker Kouki Tamura, the San Francisco coordinator of the Young Christian Leadership Conference (YCLC), a partner organization of CARP, spoke on the significance of the Korean reunification from CARP’s founders’ perspective. Kouki elaborated their points on the threat that communism poses to basic human freedoms, the hope that Korean reunification could be a model case for reconciliation in other global conflicts, and the necessity of global cooperation in the face of the division caused by world conflict.
The main message “Hope for Resolving Ideological Conflict” was delivered by the next speaker, Mrs. Christine Froehlich, curriculum developer of National CARP. Drawing upon CARP co-founder Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon’s memoir, she described the 38th parallel as the “line of lamentation” with the core of the division concerning worldviews, ultimately the battleground between atheism versus theism. Tying in her personal accounts working in the Soviet Union under communism, Mrs. Froehlich elucidated the impact of worldviews applied on a global scale, the nature of communism, and the historical trends of Hellenism and Hebraism leading up to today. She connected Korea’s division to the polarization on the UC Berkeley campus and offered practical solutions.
The final speaker David Chan, president of the Berkeley College Republicans (BCR) and Chairman of the California Federated College Republicans, imparted a student and state leader’s take on advocating for the freedom of speech, religion, and the press on college campuses. David shared his experience in hosting two BCR events during the Spring 2022 semester: the “Atrocities of the Chinese Communist Party” event and the “Reverse Q&A with Peter Boghossian” event. David addressed the silencing “cancel culture” prevalent on college campuses and his first-hand experience of them when he hosted these events. Concluding that the situation of North and South Korea is a direct reflection of basic human freedoms stripped away on a global scale, David urged for UC Berkeley to protect the freedom of speech, religion, and the press, and truly represent being the birthplace of the Free Speech movement.
After the presentations, the speakers were invited up again for a panel Q&A session where the audience brought up topics about propaganda, experiences shaping their worldviews, and bringing unity among differing views on campus. The program concluded with fellowship and enjoying homemade dishes provided by local CARP community supporters. The entire event was live streamed on CARP Bay Area’s Facebook page.
Share your story to ryota@carplife.org.