Eunmi Park: "We escaped together."

Eunmi Park is back at the FSI office to record another video!

She had to work on her own for a while today because I was getting prepared to give a speech.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSWPJPxPKg0

Update:

Yesterday started off as a typical day at Freedom Speakers International. Work, work, work.

Then, in the afternoon, it became WORK, WORK, WORK!!!

In the early afternoon, we notified some teachers from a university English teaching program that they had been selected by North Korean refugees. Many people don't check their emails so we are still waiting to confirm with some volunteers.

At 3 pm, I had a Zoom call with Greenlight to Freedom co-author Songmi Han to get prepared for our speech starting three hours later.

At 4 pm, Eunmi Park arrived. She worked on her next YouTube video until almost 6 pm.

I was putting the finishing touches on a 60-minute speech that I was going to be giving at 6 pm.

Our staff then set up the camera, but at first the sound on my microphone was low (I hope it got fixed, I talked anyway).

At 6 pm, I started the speech, Eunmi went out.

While she was out, Songmi and I gave speeches to a university class with 235 students attending (and they had their cameras on).

After that, FSI co-founder Eunkoo Lee was reminding me about the many things that I had not completed.

Then Eunmi returned... at 9:30 pm to finish recording her next YouTube video.

But wait! She had a class with her new mentor scheduled for 10 pm. It was the first class, she thought it would last maybe 15 to 30 minutes... then an hour later, they finally wrapped up. She is now getting a lot of pop-up volunteers offering to teach her English, but today she saw what a serious and professional tutor is like! They had originally discussed meeting once or twice a week--now, she wants to study with him three times a week.

Then, after 11 pm, she got back to her YouTube video. She practiced alone, then I assisted with the recording (mainly, pronunciation).

Finally, at 12:40 a.m., we wrapped up the recording.

If this post looks chaotic, good! I was trying to show what the last 10 hours have been like at the FSI office. This doesn't even include all of the other work we have during the day.

I checked my email and Facebook, wondering, how in the world can I explain this.

Oh...and Eunmi will be back... it is now Thursday morning, she will be back Thursday afternoon/evening.

I sometimes see comments on her YouTube videos about a couple of pronunciation issues. Well, we will accept that as congratulations!

When we first start a script (translated from what she has written in Korean), then edited, then re-edited, then checked for accuracy, we are celebrating that there are only a few pronunciation issues. There are many things that go into recording a video, especially for someone doing so in her third language.

Support FSI: www.fsi21.org/?donate

www.fsi21.org/?donate

Breen's column that outraged Samsung

“What People Got for Christmas” Michael Breen The Korea Times December 25, 2009 At this time of year when Seoul’s bare winter trees are wrapped in beckoning lights ― blue and white are the in colors ― and Merry Xmas signs at hotels and department stores are really saying come-hither-gentle-reveler-and-empty-your-purse, and when expensive restaurants belch noisy year-end office party groups onto every street and the karaoke rooms are full, it is tempting to declare that Christmas has lost its soul. But that would be a mistake. Christmas is a time for giving, and, before they can be given, gifts have to be bought. Commerce is good. Here, as proof, is a round up of some of the gifts given and received today by people in the news. Samsung, the world’s largest conglomerate and the rock upon which the Korean economy rests, sent traditional year-end cards offering best wishes for 2010 to the country’s politicians, prosecutors and journalists, along with 50 million w...

2015-01-09 Asia Liberty Forum (Kathmandu, Nepal)

I was pleased to be one of the speakers at the 3rd Asia Liberty Forum, held this time in Kathmandu, Nepal. Freedom Speakers International has presented at the Asia Liberty Forum several times. I was invited in 2014 and have been able to invite North Korean refugees to also speak at the forum. 2014, New Delhi, India Speakers: Chanyang Ju, Casey Lartigue Jr. https://caseylartigue.blogspot.com/2014/01/07-09-ALF-India.html http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/opinion/2014/01/137_149698.html https://www.facebook.com/CaseyLartigue/posts/1308010646009594 2015, Kathmandu, Nepal Speaker: Casey Lartigue https://caseylartigue.blogspot.com/2015/01/2015-01-09-asia-liberty-forum-kathmandu.html 2018 Jakarta, Indonesia Speakers: Eunhee Park, Casey Lartigue FSI was named a finalist for the Asia Liberty Award https://caseylartigue.blogspot.com/2021/01/11-Asia-liberty-award.html https://www.atlasnetwork.org/news/article/organizations-from-afghanistan-nepal-south-korea-named-finalists-for-asia-l 2019, Colomb...

Michael Jackson & Prince

Michael Jackson, born August 29, 1958 Prince (Rogers Nelson), born June 7, 1958 Note: Originally posted 1/31/05; reposted in honor of Prince performing at the Super Bowl this weekend... Once upon a time, I wanted to be Mike. Michael Jackson was the lovable lead singer of the Jackson 5 during the 1960s and 1970s. His family had been poor, so it is no surprise that they were releasing at least one album a year. Michael was the family's lottery ticket. I was a big-time fan. I was a member of the Jackson 5 fan club. My brothers and I tried to be just like Mike. I'm the tallest of the three. Check me out, I was so C-O-O-L ! Look at that 'Fro. Could there have been a cooler Bible-carrying kid? I could have hid entire African villages under that cap. And the African villages that could not have fit in that Afro could have squeezed into my bell bottoms. You'd have to pay me money to wear those beads today, but I was stylin' then. But it was clear that I was destined to beco...

Get rid of that watermelon!

Part 1: When I was a youngster I used to collect Confederate money, posters and photographs with caricatures of blacks, and "No blacks allowed signs." I loved the money because it was a reminder of how far the sorry Confederacy had fallen. I had one poster of a dark-skinned black boy munching on a watermelon. I would look at that small poster and wonder, "What in the world is wrong with anyone wanting to eat watermelon?" Yes, white people, I'm talking to you. Your parents, grandparents, and other ancestors who thought making fun of blacks for eating watermelon were crazy ! Even people who say that nothing has changed in race relations must acknowledge that the many stereotypes of blacks are no longer prevalent. But then, there are also some ready to remind us of days-gone-by by debunking stuff that doesn't need to be debunked today. According to the Washington Post: The sound you just heard was yet another racial stereotype going kersplat ! Some ...

Does a flower turn to the sun?

I tend not to address points raised by people commenting on posts. In the back-and-forth of such discussions, people sometimes say things they don't mean or take extreme positions. In other cases they are just trying to be provocative, especially when they can remain anonymous. But a discussion on Greg Mankiw's blog caught my attention. That's because a couple of the folks suggested that parents don't really have the knowledge to make decisions about the quality of schools. Between 2002-2004 I was actively involved in the fight to get school vouchers for families in DC. I often heard the argument that parents don't know how to choose between good and bad schools and that, anyway, parents had enough choices with the school system's "out-of-boundary" options and charters (that had also been opposed). Without getting too deep into the out-of-boundary program, I'll point out that Woodrow Wilson HS, considered one of the best schools in the city, recei...

The Casey Lartigue Show!

Search This Blog