‘Crossings’ Follows A Walk For Peace As It Crosses The Korean Divide

‘Crossings’ Follows A Walk For Peace As It Crosses The Korean Divide

‘Crossings’ Follows A Walk For Peace As It Crosses The Korean Divide
Joan MacDonald
Contributor
I write about Korean drama and film.Follow

Aug 7, 2022,08:34am EDT



The delegation crossed the DMZ to promote peace and reunification.AAIFF

When Korean American activist Christine Ahn asked Deann Borshay Liem to join women peacemakers as they crossed the demilitarized zone separating North and South Korea, Liem did not hesitate. The award-winning documentary filmmaker not only accompanied the group on their potentially dangerous journey, but captured the experience in her film Crossings.



“Christine contacted me and said, do you want to come on this delegation for peace and the reunification of Korea,” said Liem. “It pulled at my heartstrings. I immediately said, yes.”


Liem was born in South Korea and adopted by an American family. Years later she learned that the adoption story she knew wasn’t true. She was not a war orphan. Her family had not died in the Korean War. Liem’s earlier films—First Person Plural, In the Matter of Cha Jung Hee and Memory of Forgotten War—document her reunion with her birth family and attempts to understand the legacy of the Korean War.


“Through this experience of reconciling the loss of my original family in Korea, the eventual reunion, and working on a variety of different film projects,” said Liem. “I really came to see the division of families through international adoption echoing this broader landscape of division between families in the north and south.”



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The women’s peace delegation she joined included activist Gloria Steinem, Nobel Peace Laureates Leymah Gbowee and Mairead Maguire, former Army Colonel Ann Wright, Code Pink co-founder Medea Benjamin and filmmaker Abigail Disney. Many of the delegates had worked on peace efforts in their own lands and hoped that a delegation of women might offer a new perspective. According to Liem, studies have shown that when women get involved in the peace process, peace agreements tend to last longer.


Christine Ahn and Deann Borshay Liem attend the Los Angeles premiere of the film 'Crossings.' Photo ... [+]GETTY IMAGES



“They had experience working on issues in their own country,” said Liem. “Working on issues of ideological divisions, religious differences, ethnic division, racial division, all kinds of conflicts. I felt that if women from all these different countries could come together and contribute to bridge building and collective action, focusing their efforts on Korea, that it could bring fresh energy and a new perspective to this seemingly intractable conflict on the Korean peninsula.”

Although an armistice was signed in 1953, there has never been a peace treaty to end the Korean War. Tensions between North and South Korea periodically threaten to ignite into full-scale conflict and many Korean families remain separated from loved ones. Liem wanted to create a film challenging the notion that the Korean War was a distinct three-year police action, that it’s over, and everyone should just move on.

“Even though three million Koreans died, the Korean War continues to be referred to in this country as the ‘forgotten war.’ It is clearly not forgotten. It’s shocking to me that the term would be applied to a war in which so many people lost their lives.”

The delegation and film crew met in Beijing, then traveled to North Korea, where they interacted with North Korean women working for peace and reunification. The delegation defied a daunting amount of bureaucracy to cross the DMZ and reach South Korea, where they interacted with South Korean women peace activists and supporters, but also faced protests.

That access would be limited in North Korea was a given, but the delegation also encountered problems in the South, where some accused them of promoting North Korea, an act which could result in deportation. The women originally planned to cross the border at Panmunjom, but for security reasons had to relocate and were only permitted to walk part of the way.


Liem also faced challenges in fundraising, which slowed post-production. “Making a film about North Korea is really challenging in many ways,” she said. “North Korea is one of the most vilified nations in the world and our presumed enemy, since the war never ended. Making a film about a group of women trying to promote dialogue and diplomacy with the ‘enemy’ presented a number of challenges, including fundraising.”

Liem remains convinced that educating the public will help to resolve the conflict and that U.S. involvement is key.

“People don’t know that the war never really ended and that really goes to the heart of the current tensions between the U.S. and North Korea,” said Liem. “It’s not just a North Korea/South Korea problem. The future of this intractable conflict is contingent on the diplomacy of the U.S. and North Korea. More education can help create the conditions for peace to happen.”

Crossings is an inspiring film about activism—in which a group of women set out to accomplish a seemingly impossible mission and, despite serious obstacles and setbacks, succeed in making an important statement.

“We are hoping by next year, which is the 70th anniversary of the Korean War armistice, that the film will be broadcast to a national audience, said Liem. “And we will be able to bring focus on these issues at that time.”

Crossings is currently making the festival circuit, appearing at the Asian American International Film Festival, and will be screened by various organizations, including Veterans for Peace and Korea Peace Now!

Liem has long used media to affect positive change. As a filmmaker and former executive director (1993 to 1996) for the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM), she has worked diligently to share the stories of underrepresented communities. “Our organization’s whole mission was to try to increase the diversity of public television, to bring the voices of Asian, African, Latino, Native American, and Pacific Islanders, to amplify their voices and to bring more programming by and about those communities.”

For Liem, one of the rewards of making Crossings is seeing the bonds that women delegates forged during their mission. She’s also heartened by the ongoing efforts of Women Cross DMZ, the organization founded by Ahn, as they continue to mobilize women for peace in Korea.

“If Americans could really get behind this cause for peace,” said Liem. “We can make a difference. Every one of us can make a difference.”

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Joan MacDonaldFollow



I've written about Korean media for more than a decade. For three years I worked as a writer and editor at KPopStarz, a popular k-pop and k-drama news site. My stories also appear on my That Only Happens In K-dramas FB page. Read Less