[This post has been significantly altered from the original.]
Well, the recent set of developments has been interesting, given my recent posts about photography and the law, but everything has worked out quite well.
See me in the picture down there, on the pamphlet for the "Seoul Help Center for Foreigners?" Well, now that things have been smoothed over with Seoul Selection as to proper remuneration for services apparently rendered, I have requested that a significant monetary donation be made on my behalf to the Amerasian Christian Academy in Dongducheon to help out up there (pending their approval, as these are just preliminary arrangements that have been made between myself and Seoul Selection, to be clear).
So now, I am OK with having my face associated with "education" and things related to foreigners – especially since thousands of pamphlets have already been printed – so if I and Seoul Selection can turn this into a project to help even more "foreigners" in Korea (even if Amerasian kids in Korea are "foreign" in purely involuntary, social terms), then that's a truly good thing, I say.
So, I guess now I am associated with the "Foreigners Help Center" trying to make the lives of all foreigners just a little bit better, especially for ones who tend to be more brown and socially abandoned. It's the least that Seoul Selection and I could do. Don't you agree?
The site where this is published is here.
I've actually posted about the school here before, in the "Spoken Word in Seoul" podcast, from which I'll quote (this is from the publicity blurb from the fundraising organization, except for the title headings, which came from the blog post):
ABOUT THE BENEFICIARY
All proceeds from this special holiday edition will be donated to the Amerasian Academy to support their mission to empower Amerasian students in Dongducheon City with a bilingual, challenging education from kindergarten through 12th grade. In the face of widespread discrimination, nearly 20% of Amerasian children in Korea drop out of school during junior high, while 10% drop out during elementary school. Amerasian Christian Academy was established in 1999 to meet the educational needs of single parent Amerasian children. Using English as the main mode of teaching and communication, ACA's aim is to provide a challenging and creative environment where Amerasian students are all welcome.
ABOUT PB&J
Started in February 2005 as a nonprofit volunteer collective to raise money for and promote awareness of local and international non-profit organizations, PBJ has successfully organized eight different arts, music and dj benefits in the year 2005, supporting the following diverse non-profits in chronological order: CARE for Tsunami Relief, Adoptee Solidarity Korea, Burma Action, Migrant Worker TV, Ae-ran-won Single Mothers' Home, organizations working on Hurricane Katrina relief, artist project OKAYBOOK, and Medecins San Frontiers for their work with survivors of the October South Asia Earthquake.
Contact us at
[email protected]!
When arrangements are made to actually complete the donation, there will be an update to this post. At that time, there will also be information as to how to make your own, individual donations if you'd like.
And be sure to get on PB&J's mailing list as well!
