Anna Mae case sets off alarm for immigrants
By Erin Sullivan
Commercial Appeal
March 14, 2004

Khun-Bok Ahn considers himself lucky. 

By Lance Murphey Jerry and Louise Baker (left) are in a custody battle with Shaoqiang 'Jack' and Qin Luo 'Casey' He (right) over the Hes' 5-year-old daughter, Anna Mae.

He was an educated man in South Korea. A man with a degree in electrical engineering. A lieutenant in the South Korean Army. A respected man who knew things. 

When he came to America in 1971, his image crumbled. He was still the same inside. But, outside, he was a man who couldn't speak the language. Couldn't understand the culture. 

"I did not know anything," Ahn said. "But nothing bad happened to me. I was lucky." 

He learned English. Got a job. Raised a family. Became an American citizen. 

He made it. 

But his story easily could have been one like Shaoqiang 'Jack' and Qin Luo 'Casey' Hes', the Chinese couple who are fighting for custody of their daughter, Anna Mae. In 1999, Jack He lost his university job. The young couplestruggled. They voluntarily gave Anna Mae into what they thought was temporary foster care. 

The foster family, Jerry and Louise Baker of Cordova, want to adopt Anna Mae. The Hes say they've been trying to get her back for four years. The Bakers say the Hes abandoned Anna Mae. The case is in Circuit Court. Lawyers for each side will present closing arguments March 22. The judge then has 30 days to make a decision. 

Ahn and other supporters of the Hes say the couple didn't understand what they were signing when they gave Anna Mae to the Bakers. They didn't know English - much less legal language. 

"This is a humanitarian issue. It's not white or black or anything else. It is a human being issue," Ahn said before a panel discussion about the case held at the Ramada Inn Saturday. 

"They came to this country not understanding the issues and customs . . . They thought they would get the child back." 

A dozen speakers from private and governmental organizations, plus the lawyers working free for the Hes - David Siegel and Richard Gordon - attended. A lunch fund-raiser for the Help Anna Mae Foundation followed. 

The panelists talked about what went wrong in the case - meaning, how the Hes got into the situation they're in now - and how such problems can be prevented in the future. Programs educating new immigrants about the legal system - and American customs and the English language - are needed, the speakers said. 

The language barrier was the most discussed problem. In court, the Hes have said a minister interpreted for them when they gave up Anna Mae. They testified that they thought it would be for a few months, until they got back on their feet. 

"The community at large failed. We are here to provide services for people whether they are citizens or undocumented," said Narquenta Sims, of Memphis's office of multicultural and religious affairs. "There were so many opportunities for the Hes to receive assistance - to get counseling, health care, employment opportunities . . . 

"It's time to work some seven-day weeks, to do whatever it takes to prevent these kinds of actions from happening again." 

Many of the speakers were foreign-born - from Panama, Lebanon, China, Great Britain. Some, like Cynthia Magallon of the YMCA, were the children of immigrants. Her parents came from Mexico. 

"It seems like the only thing the Hes did wrong was being Chinese. And that is something I never want to see happen here," Magallon said. "All of us who are immigrants need to join together, and we need to be our own political advocates. This could happen to any of us." 

Jinliang Cai, a council member of the Greater Memphis United Chinese Association, said the saddest thing was that the Hes are so frustrated by their experience that - if they win custody of Anna Mae - they plan on moving back to China. 

"This is not how America is supposed to be. We are supposed to be fair," Cai said. "They came here because of an American idea of fairness and equality." 

He said the community can turn the case into something good. 

"We can use this to teach people that America is a fair and equal place for everybody." 

- Erin Sullivan: 529-5880