Research Description

A gender historian of modern Korea/East Asia with comparative perspectives, with research and teaching interests in gender and sexuality, social and labor history, US empire, global militarism and capitalism, and transnational history of war and bases. I am is currently working on my first book, tentatively entitled "Intimate Exchanges: Korean women, American GIs, and the Making of the Wartime Political Economy during the Korean War (1950-53)." I am also developing two new book projects: One, tentatively titled "The birth of a global money: MPC and the sexual economy of war and base in post-WWII world," extends my first project and looks into the global circulation of US military scrip through sexual transactions in and around its overseas bases. The other project, "Landscape of occupation and living labor" examines local labour recurited for foriegn base construction and its operation. I have a long-term commitment to social justice and public humanities, and had worked as a feminist activist and a specialist/educator for sexual violence prevention/diversity promotion on campus prior to my ph.d.