Leaders from Los Angeles' Korean and African-American faith communities joined forces last week to press elected officials to improve conditions in Koreatown in central Los Angeles.

At an Apr. 29 gathering held at the Oriental Mission Church in Koreatown, community members called on Mayor Jim Hahn and Los Angeles City Council member Martin Ludlow to actively address six issues plaguing the quality of life in Koreatown and other central city neighborhoods saying the problems that affect one community inevitably spill over into others.

L.A. Metro-IAF organizer Rev. Howard Kim praised the presence of leaders from the African-American community as an important step in healing Los Angeles' communities because "the only power we can build is to organize people; otherwise we don't have any power at all. The collaboration with the African-American community is an important first step."

Rev. Kim called on the elected officials and assembled community leaders to work to continue this first step of organizing in the community.

"This is a historic moment for the Korean community because we have never done this publicly before," said Kim. "Public officials are beginning to recognize the community and see that they have to address us."

Kim also noted that the main issues addressed at the meeting --- extreme traffic congestion, the disruption caused by the L.A. Marathon, the abundance of liquor stores in the area, the need to improve the area's schools, the plight of immigrant workers and the problems of drugs and gangs --- were just the beginning of the work needed in the area.

Pastor Robert Cole of Crusaders Temple Church of God in Christ in South Los Angeles welcomed the opportunity join forces with the Korean community saying "We have in Compton, in Lynwood and in Watts some of the same problems you have in Koreatown. And your concerns are our concerns so it behooves us to work together. We can achieve together what we cannot alone."

Both Mayor Hahn and Councilman Ludlow quickly promised to work closely with community leaders to address the quality of life issues.

"My top priority is to make this a safer city," said Mayor Hahn. "Drugs and gangs are hurting our young people…but the police department can't solve it by themselves. So I'm looking forward to working with L.A Metro-IAF and the Korean community to end the problems in this community."

To commemorate the 12th anniversary of the L.A. riots, speakers told how the events of 1992 have served to strengthen the ties between communities.

"Even through it was a tragedy we had a lot of lessons to learn," said L.A. Metro-IAF member Rev. Hyun Sung, pastor of Pasadena Presbyterian Church. "At the time the Korean community was totally isolated from other communities."

"I have a church right near where the riots broke out," said L.A. Metro strategy president Msgr. David O'Connell of St. Michael's Church in South Los Anngeles. "I was testifying before Congress on violence in urban America when I was asked why is there so much violence in Los Angeles. I said I think it is because we are too isolated from each other…we stay closed in our own communities, and because of that we are not working together and there's going to be violence."

Today leaders in the Korean community are working hard to break down barriers that they feel sometimes isolates their community.

St. Gregory Nazianzen Church in Los Angeles is an example of a predominately Korean parish that celebrates the cultures of all its members. The parish is about 60 percent Korean, 25 percent Spanish speaking and the remaining English speaking, said associate pastor Father Alex Chung who sees language, not race, ethnicity or culture as the main barrier to bringing people together.

"This shouldn't stop us from trying to bring a sense of harmony but integration is not something you can force. It has a way of working itself out," said Father Chung. "We need to be aware that we are Catholics first, and we are here to practice and proclaim faith."

Father Chung noted that there are many parishes where not everyone knows everyone else. But that separation has a tendency to stand out stronger in ethnically mixed parishes, he said, because "ethnicities are a visible thing and sometimes we can be unreasonable in expectations of what it means to be a community of faith."

Father Gerardo Cabral, pastor of St. Paul Church (St. Gregory Nazianzen's neighboring parish) in Los Angeles, said in his parish it is also language that is often the barrier, rather than cultural or racial issues. Because of this, he said the L.A. Metro-IAF meeting was an important reminder to find ways "to remember to share our cultures and riches because each community has something valuable to share. We can help each other by being open."

"If any one community becomes isolated it's that much harder to be successful as a whole," said Ken Fujimoto, senior organizer at L.A. Metro-IAF. "We recognize the differences of language, culture and institutional life in communities and that we have to build trust. The only way to do this is through a lot of conversations like the Koreatown meeting."