The Korean revolutionary who became America's first Asian-American doctor and a political pioneer

Ideas & Philosophy · Published 29 September 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Philip Jaisohn lived a life of extraordinary reinvention. After a failed 1884 coup decimated his family, he fled to the United States, becoming its first naturalized Korean citizen and the first Asian-American physician. He later returned to Korea to champion democracy, education, and independence through journalism and public reform.

Born Seo Jae-pil in 1864, Jaisohn was a brilliant young official who quickly grew disillusioned with the rigid, obsolete structures of the Joseon government. His involvement in the 1884 Kapsin Coup, a radical attempt to modernize Korea, ended in disaster. The failed uprising cost him his status and his family; his parents and brothers were executed under guilt-by-association laws, and his wife died after being sold into slavery. Forced into exile, he sought a new life in the United States, where he adopted the name Philip Jaisohn.

In America, Jaisohn pursued a path of intellectual and professional rigor. He earned a medical degree from Columbia Medical College in 1892, marking a historic milestone as the first Asian-American doctor. Yet, his commitment to his homeland never wavered. Upon returning to Korea in 1895, he launched a transformative project: the Tongnip sinmun. By publishing this newspaper entirely in Hangul, he aimed to bypass elite barriers and provide political education to the broader population, including women and the lower classes. He became a vocal advocate for civil rights, universal suffrage, and a neutral diplomatic stance to protect Korea from imperialist neighbors.

Jaisohn’s later years were defined by a relentless, often self-sacrificial dedication to Korean sovereignty. He organized the 1919 First Korean Congress in Philadelphia to rally American support for independence and later served as a chief advisor to the U.S. Army Military Government in Korea after World War II. Despite being petitioned to run for the presidency of the new nation, he declined, ultimately returning to the United States. He passed away in 1951, and his legacy was honored in 1994 when his remains were repatriated to the Seoul National Cemetery, cementing his status as a foundational figure in the struggle for a modern, independent Korea.

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