By Jane Han
NEW YORK — As Korea is in mourning in the wake of the ferry disaster, so are Koreans overseas as they feel just as heartbroken, bitter and angry over the lost young lives and the government's handling of the crisis.
Just like everyone back in their mother country, many Koreans in the U.S. are up day and night checking real-time rescue updates, clinging onto the slightest shred of hope that even a single survivor might be found.
"I am speechless. I was speechless when the news first broke and am still speechless now," said Yang Ji-hae, 32, a mother of two daughters who lives in Connecticut. "How can we let this happen to our children? Unbelievable is all I can say."
Park Bong-joo, 58, of New York, said he, too, is in disbelief that Korea's crisis management skills have not improved over the years.
"How many more tragedies like this must we see in order for authorities to wake up and get the system working? Shame on the older generation," he said.
Major online communities have been flooded with news, stories and opinions related to the sunken ferry Sewol, so much so that other topics have no place to go.
"I usually come to this site for entertainment news, but I feel like I'm sinning just clicking on some celebrity gossip story. We should all mourn right now. That is the least we can do," wrote one user on MissyUSA.com, the largest online community for Koreans in the U.S.
Another user wrote, "I can't even focus on work these days. I am all consumed by this tragic news as the death toll continues to rise."
As of Tuesday, the death toll jumped past 100 with nearly 200 still missing.
Korean communities and organizations big and small across the U.S. began teaming up to contribute to the relief measures as hundreds of distraught family members are camping out at a gymnasium in the port city of Jindo.
People are passing on information about different methods to send care packages to the families in need.
Koreans in New York and New Jersey have launched a letter of hope campaign through which they plan to send postcards and letters to victims' family members as a gesture of consolation.
Some are independently setting up memorials in front of their homes, while others are gathering together for candlelight vigils. Korean students at MIT, Harvard and Boston University organized a two-day candlelight vigil in Boston.
"We came together for this as our own small but meaningful way to let people know about the heartbreaking accident," said Stella Park, who organized the event.
NEW YORK — As Korea is in mourning in the wake of the ferry disaster, so are Koreans overseas as they feel just as heartbroken, bitter and angry over the lost young lives and the government's handling of the crisis.
Just like everyone back in their mother country, many Koreans in the U.S. are up day and night checking real-time rescue updates, clinging onto the slightest shred of hope that even a single survivor might be found.
"I am speechless. I was speechless when the news first broke and am still speechless now," said Yang Ji-hae, 32, a mother of two daughters who lives in Connecticut. "How can we let this happen to our children? Unbelievable is all I can say."
Park Bong-joo, 58, of New York, said he, too, is in disbelief that Korea's crisis management skills have not improved over the years.
"How many more tragedies like this must we see in order for authorities to wake up and get the system working? Shame on the older generation," he said.
Major online communities have been flooded with news, stories and opinions related to the sunken ferry Sewol, so much so that other topics have no place to go.
"I usually come to this site for entertainment news, but I feel like I'm sinning just clicking on some celebrity gossip story. We should all mourn right now. That is the least we can do," wrote one user on MissyUSA.com, the largest online community for Koreans in the U.S.
Another user wrote, "I can't even focus on work these days. I am all consumed by this tragic news as the death toll continues to rise."
As of Tuesday, the death toll jumped past 100 with nearly 200 still missing.
Korean communities and organizations big and small across the U.S. began teaming up to contribute to the relief measures as hundreds of distraught family members are camping out at a gymnasium in the port city of Jindo.
People are passing on information about different methods to send care packages to the families in need.
Koreans in New York and New Jersey have launched a letter of hope campaign through which they plan to send postcards and letters to victims' family members as a gesture of consolation.
Some are independently setting up memorials in front of their homes, while others are gathering together for candlelight vigils. Korean students at MIT, Harvard and Boston University organized a two-day candlelight vigil in Boston.
"We came together for this as our own small but meaningful way to let people know about the heartbreaking accident," said Stella Park, who organized the event.
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