Lesson Overview:

 Col. Young Oak Kim was a renowned war hero who served during World War
II and the Korean War. Col. Kim helped lead the mostly Japanese American Nisei unit,
the 100th/442nd Regimental Combat Team. Although he was Korean American, Col.
Kim stressed that color lines and racial divides had no place in the United States. Born
in Los Angeles, CA, he attended Belmont High School and became a humanitarian after
retiring from the US Army in 1972. Col. Kim helped shape the landscape of Los Angeles
through his humanitarian work by creating, establishing, and participating in the
formation of several nonprofits still in operation today. He helped to create the
Koreatown Youth and Community Center, Korean Health Education Information and
Research Center, Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles, and helped
battered women by founding the Center for the Pacific Asian Family. He also helped
children through other nonprofits. His work has left lasting change in California, still
palpable through the organizations he helped establish and which continue to operate
today