Helie Lee
Encyclopedia
Helie Lee is a Korean American
writer and university lecturer who has also made a documentary film.
, South Korea
. Her family moved to Montreal
, Canada
when she was four years old. A year later, they emigrated to the United States
, settling in California
. Lee graduated from UCLA in 1986 with a college degree in Political Science.
Lee became active in raising awareness of human rights
issues for North Korean defectors
. In 2002, she testified before the Senate Subcommittee Hearing on Immigration to urge increased American support for North Korean refugees.
In her first book, Still Life With Rice
(1996), Lee chronicled her grandmother's 1950 escape from northern to southern Korea during the Korean War
which separated her grandmother's family. In her second book, In the Absence of Sun (1998), Lee recounts her family's experiences in helping her uncle escape from North Korea
.
In 2010, she released a documentary called Macho Like Me, in which she "doffs all signifiers of femininity to live as a man". A review in the LA Weekly panned the "cutsey one–woman-show framing device" but stated that the experiences that "upend [Lee's] preconceptions, mak[e] for engrossing viewing."
Korean American
Korean Americans are Americans of Korean descent, mostly from South Korea, with a small minority from North Korea...
writer and university lecturer who has also made a documentary film.
Biography and work
Lee was born in SeoulSeoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
, South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
. Her family moved to Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
when she was four years old. A year later, they emigrated to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, settling in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. Lee graduated from UCLA in 1986 with a college degree in Political Science.
Lee became active in raising awareness of human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
issues for North Korean defectors
North Korean defectors
A number of individuals have defected from North Korea. Since the division of Korea after World War II and the end of the Korean War , many people have defected from North Korea, mainly for political, ideological, religious and economic reasons...
. In 2002, she testified before the Senate Subcommittee Hearing on Immigration to urge increased American support for North Korean refugees.
In her first book, Still Life With Rice
Still Life With Rice
Still Life With Rice is a novel written by Helie Lee, and published in 1997 by Simon & Schuster. It is based around an accounts of suffering due to war and child abuse. Although it is written by Helie Lee, the book is mostly written from the veiwpoint of Lee's grandmother, Hongyong Baek...
(1996), Lee chronicled her grandmother's 1950 escape from northern to southern Korea during the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
which separated her grandmother's family. In her second book, In the Absence of Sun (1998), Lee recounts her family's experiences in helping her uncle escape from North Korea
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
.
In 2010, she released a documentary called Macho Like Me, in which she "doffs all signifiers of femininity to live as a man". A review in the LA Weekly panned the "cutsey one–woman-show framing device" but stated that the experiences that "upend [Lee's] preconceptions, mak[e] for engrossing viewing."
Selected works
- Still Life With RiceStill Life With RiceStill Life With Rice is a novel written by Helie Lee, and published in 1997 by Simon & Schuster. It is based around an accounts of suffering due to war and child abuse. Although it is written by Helie Lee, the book is mostly written from the veiwpoint of Lee's grandmother, Hongyong Baek...
, Simon & SchusterSimon & SchusterSimon & Schuster, Inc., a division of CBS Corporation, is a publisher founded in New York City in 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. It is one of the four largest English-language publishers, alongside Random House, Penguin and HarperCollins...
, 1997. - In the Absence of Sun, Harmony, 1998.