To clarify—my grandmother’s story comes from a time shortly after the Japanese occupation of Korea, during which it was actually ILLEGAL for Koreans to speak Korean. Hence, the understandable backlash against speaking Japanese once the occupation ended. Unfortunately, my grandmother was accused of being a Japanese collaborator for knowing Japanese too well (an accusation that could carry life or death consequences for people back then in North Korea), which is what led to her fear. My reference to this memory is merely to make the point that the suppression of language can have long-lasting effects on a person. Decades after she fled North Korea, my grandmother remained too terrified to teach us Japanese on the living room floor of our house all the way in Skokie, Illinois. When I was little, my mother used to hide the kimchi, doenjang, and kkenip when non-Korean friends came over. She was worried about “the smell.” Years later, when I started bringing Korean food to the office, Omma ...