Three Los Angeles assisted residing amenities with a principally Korean clientele turned away non-Koreans who inquired about transferring in , with employees stating that solely Koreans could be accepted, based on a federal lawsuit filed by the Truthful Housing Federation of Southern California and two Black plaintiffs.
The federation, a nonprofit that seeks to remove housing discrimination, employed 10 “testers” who posed as members of the family of senior residents all in favour of residing in one of many amenities — Sunny Hills Assisted Residing in Pico-Robertson, Backyard Silver City in Koreatown and Mugunghwa Silvertown simply south of Koreatown.
The assisted residing amenities instructed the seven non-Korean testers that they solely accepted Koreans, based on the lawsuit. The three Korean testers despatched to the amenities moved additional alongside within the admissions course of, got a tour and allowed to submit the potential resident’s medical information, the lawsuit stated.
Sunny Hills administrator Steve Cho instructed The Occasions on Wednesday that he and different staffers consider whether or not an applicant is wholesome sufficient to stay on the facility, which might’t look after individuals with extreme psychological or bodily sicknesses.
“Whether or not they’re foreigners, Koreans, white, Black, it doesn’t matter to us,” Cho stated in Korean. “An important issue is their situation.”
However the lawsuit, filed final Friday, instructed a unique story.
Plaintiff Lydia Mojica Behrens referred to as Sunny Hills in February 2022 hoping to discover a place for her 89-year-old mom, who suffers from debilitating arthritis and different circumstances, based on the lawsuit. When Behrens stated her mom’s title, Zenaida Mojica, a employee replied, “Mojica? Is that Spanish?”
Behrens and her mom, who can be a plaintiff, are Black of Cuban ancestry.
In response to the lawsuit, the employee conferred with a colleague, then instructed Behrens, “Nicely we solely take Korean individuals. We’re Koreans and everybody right here is Korean.”
When Behrens requested for clarification, the employee added that each resident and worker was Korean, based on the lawsuit. There was no want for Behrens to take a tour, since her mom was not Korean and wouldn’t have the ability to stay there, the lawsuit stated.
In response to the lawsuit, when two Black testers inquired a few spot for an aged guardian at Sunny Hills the following month, they acquired related responses, with one worker stating, “Solely Koreans are cared for right here.”
A tester of Korean ancestry was handled otherwise, the lawsuit stated, receiving a tour of the power and a worth checklist.
Along with compensatory and punitive damages and attorneys’ charges, the plaintiffs are asking that the defendants not discriminate in opposition to candidates and that the plaintiffs be given a spot on the amenities.
Odion Okojie and David Iyalomhe, attorneys representing the plaintiffs, didn’t reply to requests for remark.
Testers from the housing federation have been handled equally on the two different assisted residing amenities in March 2022, based on the lawsuit, with non-Korean testers turned away and Korean testers welcomed.
In response to the lawsuit, a Black tester at Backyard Silver City was instructed to inquire at amenities that settle for Black individuals, because it was just for Koreans.
A white tester who referred to as Mugunghwa Silvertown was instructed that the power was a “100%” Korean facility and that the potential resident couldn’t apply as a non-Korean, the lawsuit stated.
“Not solely did this by no means occur, there’s no approach it might have occurred,” Mugunghwa Silvertown administrator Jessica Shin stated in Korean. “Our workers undergo anti-discrimination coaching.”
Backyard Silver City administrator Steve Kim referred to as the discrimination allegations “some form of misunderstanding.”
“I’m in full shock,” stated Kim, who stated he discovered concerning the lawsuit within the Korean-language media. “We’ve by no means discriminated in opposition to anybody coming into the power.”
Backyard Silver City is within the coronary heart of Koreatown, so all of its 60 residents are normally Korean, Kim stated.
“Previously, we’ve had African American residents, Caucasian residents,” Kim stated. “It’s simply in the previous few years, it’s been numerous Koreans which were coming in, and that’s simply the way it’s been.”
Cho of Sunny Hills stated that potential residents are all the time invited to return in and have a meal of Korean meals equivalent to rice, soup and kimchi that non-Koreans will not be accustomed to.
Two of Sunny Hills’ roughly 90 residents are non-Korean, Cho stated. He added that he doesn’t see an issue with a facility in a predominantly Korean neighborhood having a Korean employees and serving an overwhelmingly Korean consumer base.
“I feel there may be an underlying jealousy behind these allegations in opposition to these profitable Korean-run amenities,” he stated. “There are numerous amenities that simply have predominantly white individuals and predominantly Black individuals. Is that discrimination?”
