The Korean Studies Research Network and International Programs will present a virtual lecture by guest speaker Dr. Jeongeun Lee entitled "Becoming South Korean Mothers: North Korean Defector Mothers in South Korea" on Friday, March 11, from noon to 1:30 p.m. (CST), via Zoom. 

Guest speaker Dr. Jeongeun Lee brings together two bodies of scholarship that are rarely connected: refugees/defectors and motherhood. By focusing on North Korean defector mothers’ own voices as “women” and “mothers,” – not just as “defectors,” this talk highlights that their defection status continues even after resettlement and while dealing with the process of becoming “South Koreans” and “transnational mothers” with children left behind in North Korea and/or China.

Dr. Jeongeun Lee received her PhD in anthropology from the University of Iowa in December 2021. Her research currently focuses on the lived realities of North Korean defectors, particularly mothers, in the context of resettling in South Korea.

This event is free and open to the public.

This event is generously funded by the Korea Foundation.