Ha Soo Whang (; 1892–1984), was a Korean American

social worker Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social work ...

. She was the first Korean social worker in

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

, and acted as a bilingual interpreter for the families under her care. A graduate of

Athens College Athens College ( el, Κολλέγιο(ν) Αθηνών; formally Hellenic-American Educational Foundation (HAEF)) is a co-educational private preparatory school in Psychiko, Greece, a suburb of Athens, part of the Hellenic-American Educational ...

, she was affiliated with the

YWCA The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries. The World office is currently based in Geneva, Swi ...

's International Institute. She is credited with spreading the art of

Korean dance Dance in Korea began with shamanistic early rituals five thousand years ago and now ranges from folk dance to newly created and adopted contemporary dance. Overview Korean traditional dance originated in ancient shamanistic rituals thousands ...

in Hawaii.

Career

Whang was born in Korea and was educated in missionary schools there. She came to the United States and attended Athens College for Young Women (

Athens State University Athens State University is a public upper-division university in Athens, Alabama. Its academics are housed in three colleges: Education, Arts and Sciences, and Business. History Athens State University is Alabama's oldest educational institution ...

). On her way back to Korea in 1922, she stopped in Hawaii, and was offered a job at the YWCA International Institute. While there, she started the HyungJay Club, where young Korean-American women could learn about traditional Korean culture, and the Mother's club, where elderly Korean women could become more familiar with American culture. Her goal was to bridge the gap between first- and second-generation Korean-Americans, but was foremost concerned with the well-being of the Korean community in Hawaii.

Dance

Before Whang began her work, "respectable" Korean women did not dance, and men did so only when they were intoxicated. Whang did not teach dance herself, but rather found dancers who were willing to teach and connected them with students. Susan Chun Lee and Chai Yong Ha were two dancers she worked closely with in this capacity. Whang organized performances until 1942, when the International Institute was dissolved. She left Hawaii in 1943. Her work promoting Korean dance and culture in Hawaii was continued first by

Halla Pai Huhm Halla Pai Huhm (alternately, Halla Huhm, Pai Halla, or Pae Yŏng-ja; 1922–1994) was a Korean-American dancer and the most well-known teacher of Korean dance in Hawaii. She established the Halla Pai Huhm dance studio, and after her death, the Ha ...

, then

Mary Jo Freshley Mary Jo Freshley (born September 25, 1934) is an American instructor of Korean dance. She teaches at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and the Halla Pai Huhm Dance Studio. Freshley is one of the Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii's Living Tre ...

Personal life

Her family was involved with the

Korean National Association The Korean National Association (; Hanja: 大韓人國民會), also known as All Korea Korean National Association, was a political organization established on February 1, 1909, to fight Japan's colonial policies and occupation in Korea. It w ...

and her brothers were ordained

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

ministers. Her nieces, Mary and Elizabeth, came to live with her in Hawaii after their mother, Chang Tae Sun, died.

References

Bibliography

External links