Hyun-ah Jung, President of KACCWA, becomes Vice President of ECCC
Korean American Chamber of Commerce, Washington State (KACCWA – President: Jung Hyun-Ah) has taken its first step to integrating into the mainstream society outside of the local Korean community, in an effort to empower local businesses owned by ethnic minorities in Washington.
KACCWA launched the Ethnic Chamber of Commerce Coalition (ECCC) as one of the founding members, together with the Greater Seattle Chinese Chamber of Commerce (GSCCC), the Greater Seattle Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce, and the King County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (KCHCC).
200 individuals from the local community visited the event, including officials from King County, Seattle City Hall, Bellevue City Hall, Port of Seattle and other administrative organizations in the Greater Seattle area.
With a banner denoting the slogan “Call to Action”, KACCWA was officially listed as one of the founding members, while the Filipino Chamber of Commerce / PNW and the Taiwanese Chamber of Commerce of Seattle were listed as member organizations.
The ECCC’s primary focus is on: ▲providing more work through vocational training ▲improving health and medical care for laborers ▲launching educational projects and programs for better opportunities.
“It has been 53 years since the founding of the Greater Seattle Chinese Chamber of Commerce”, said Martha Lee, president of the ECCC and former president of GSCCC, who further stated, “It is now time to join forces with other minority communities to better represent our needs and value to the mainstream society”.
Stressing the impact local Korean businesses has on the economy of Washington State, Vice President Jung also added, “Ethnic minorities must unite to have a strong voice”.
“With a high school graduation rate of below 50 percent, the Hispanic population is far more likely to secure low-paying jobs”, said KCHCC, a voice to over a million Hispanic residents in the state. KCHCC promised to exert their greatest efforts into improving the education system in order to provide better opportunities for the future of the Hispanic community.