Korean-Americans face ‘pure fear’ under Trump’s immigration policies, activist says

For the Korean American community, the first year of US President Donald Trump’s return to power has been defined by a sense of “pure fear”.According to Kim Dong-seok, head of the non-profit Korean American Grassroots Conference (KAGC), the institutional tolerance that once protected immigrants has vanished, replaced by a political environment that views non-citizens with a presumption of criminality.“Even though the US government says it distinguishes between lawful and unlawful immigrants, and between those with and without criminal records, that line is not enforced in reality,” Kim said during an interview with Hankook Ilbo.In practice, he added, the situation on the ground has become increasingly precarious as people are being rounded up indiscriminately.“During his first term, anti-immigration policies were largely justified on national security grounds. But his inner circle was unprepared, and at times restrained him from carrying out policies that went too far,” Kim said.“This time, however, Trump returned to office with Project 2025 – a comprehensive policy road map built on the premise that the United States should function as a stable and secure nation for white Americans.”