Ph.D. Dissertation in Progress:

Diasporic Group Subjectivity: Distinct Group Identities and Memories of ‘Comfort Women’ in Korean American Communities

My dissertation examines how two co-ethnic memory activist groups have constructed distinct identities and social memories of women forced into military sexual slavery. Ultimately, I argue that the groups’ mobilization of divergent identity narratives and mnemonic frameworks reveals the multiplicity and liminality of diasporic subjectivities and social memories.

My research highlights the often-overlooked heterogeneity within diasporic memory work, challenging dominant assumptions that co-ethnic communities possess uniform identities and memories shaped primarily through ties to the homeland. Although well-studied, the “comfort women” movement in the U.S. is largely framed as a unified transnational effort. My work complicates this narrative of honoring these women, offering a nuanced understanding of how diasporic subjectivities are negotiated in local contexts. It contributes to scholarship on diaspora and feminist memory activism by foregrounding the significance of place, identity, and localized commemorative practices.

My findings form the foundation of several related publications, including “Trick or Treat: Confronting the Hauntological Cycle of De- and Re-Commemorating the Statue of Peace” in The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus and “Beyond State Immunity: Feminist Interventions in International Law and Survivor-Centered Justice in the Comfort Women v. Japan Rulings” in International Feminist Journal of Politics.