A new resolution filed in the Texas House on Wednesday seeks to gain statewide recognition of Koreatown in northwest Dallas. Texas state Rep. Rafael Anchía…
A new resolution filed in the Texas House on Wednesday seeks to gain statewide recognition of Koreatown in northwest Dallas.
Texas state Rep. Rafael Anchía authored the concurrent resolution that, if passed, would designate a 1.6-mile stretch on Royal Lane, between Luna Road and Harry Hines Boulevard as “Koreatown Dallas.” Last month, City Council Member Omar Narvaez and other city officials held a unveiling ceremony for street signs at the corner of Harry Hines Boulevard and Royal Lane that read in Korean and English.
Many in the Korean American community in North Texas, which is the largest of its kind in the state, saw the new street signs as a major step toward the city’s designation of the area as Koreatown.
John Lee, on behalf of the Greater Dallas Korean American Chamber of Commerce, is leading the efforts to get official recognitions for the area. He said he thinks it is “incredible” that Anchía, whose district encompasses Koreatown and the Asian Trade District, is providing the Korean American community in North Texas an opportunity to gain more visibility.
Moving forward, Lee said he hopes to see more efforts to revitalize Koreatown.
“Signs are what we can do from a visibility perspective,” Lee said. “But I always say if we want to beautify, we have to have ownership.”
The concurrent resolution states that the designation would be effective for ten years and can be renewed. If passed, organizations like the Korean chamber could approach the Texas Department of Transportation for signs on the highway.
It could also pave the way for the Korean American community to gain further recognitions and designations for its historical significance and contribution to the area, Anchía said.
“Often, unless we name things in government, it does not receive attention,” Anchía said. “Creating this designation allows us to focus on a defined area for purposes of state signage or designations related to cultural arts.”
Texas state Rep. Rafael Anchía speaks during a ceremony to unveil new street signs that will read in both Korean and English in northwest Dallas, Friday, Jan. 13, 2023.(Elías Valverde II / Staff Photographer)
Anchía said that the state’s recognition of Dallas’ Koreatown is also timely in light of the shooting last year at a Korean-owned hair salon in the area, which Dallas police have said was motivated by hate.
“It’s a way to highlight the positive contributions of this commercial zone and the Asian immigrant community, we wanted to project the positives of that and counteract some of the anti-Asian sentiment and hate that has manifested into ill-conceived legislation that we’re seeing at the state level,” he said.
Korean American business leaders push for recognition of Koreatown in northwest Dallas
Texas Senate bills 147 and 552, both of which have been authored by Republican lawmakers, aim to add regulations that would ban people with ties to four countries (China, Iran, North Korea and Russia) from purchasing real estate or property in the state. The latter relates to the purchase of agricultural land by companies with ties to the four countries.
Anchía was part of a rally in Dallas on Sunday to protest the two bills. Hundreds of people attended the event.
He said he wanted to be part of the event to show his solidarity with “communities that are often times scapegoated by the Legislature,” and added that state lawmakers should work to make sure that Texas is a place where Asian Americans feel welcome to live and do business.
“Whether you’ve been here for decades like the original residents who set up business in (Dallas) Koreatown, or you are an immigrant who is fleeing a crackdown of Democracy in Hong Kong, we want to honor your contributions,” Anchía said.
New street signs to be the ‘first step’ to wider recognition for Dallas’ Koreatown