The Korea Times
amn_close.png
amn_bl.png
National
  • Politics
  • Foreign Affairs
  • Multicultural Community
  • Defense
  • Environment & Animals
  • Law & Crime
  • Society
  • Health & Science
amn_bl.png
Business
  • Tech
  • Bio
  • Companies
amn_bl.png
Finance
  • Companies
  • Economy
  • Markets
  • Cryptocurrency
amn_bl.png
Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Thoughts of the Times
  • Cartoon
  • Today in History
  • Blogs
  • Tribune Service
  • Blondie & Garfield
  • Letter to President
  • Letter to the Editor
amn_bl.png
Lifestyle
  • Travel & Food
  • Trends
  • People & Events
  • Books
  • Around Town
  • Fortune Telling
amn_bl.png
Entertainment & Arts
  • K-pop
  • Films
  • Shows & Dramas
  • Music
  • Theater & Others
amn_bl.png
Sports
amn_bl.png
World
  • SCMP
  • Asia
amn_bl.png
Video
  • Korean Storytellers
  • POPKORN
  • Culture
  • People
  • News
amn_bl.png
Photos
  • Photo News
  • Darkroom
amn_NK.png amn_DR.png amn_LK.png amn_LE.png
  • bt_fb_on_2022.svgbt_fb_over_2022.svg
  • bt_twitter_on_2022.svgbt_twitter_over_2022.svg
  • bt_youtube_on_2022.svgbt_youtube_over_2022.svg
  • bt_instagram_on_2022.svgbt_instagram_over_2022.svg
The Korea Times
amn_close.png
amn_bl.png
National
  • Politics
  • Foreign Affairs
  • Multicultural Community
  • Defense
  • Environment & Animals
  • Law & Crime
  • Society
  • Health & Science
amn_bl.png
Business
  • Tech
  • Bio
  • Companies
amn_bl.png
Finance
  • Companies
  • Economy
  • Markets
  • Cryptocurrency
amn_bl.png
Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Thoughts of the Times
  • Cartoon
  • Today in History
  • Blogs
  • Tribune Service
  • Blondie & Garfield
  • Letter to President
  • Letter to the Editor
amn_bl.png
Lifestyle
  • Travel & Food
  • Trends
  • People & Events
  • Books
  • Around Town
  • Fortune Telling
amn_bl.png
Entertainment & Arts
  • K-pop
  • Films
  • Shows & Dramas
  • Music
  • Theater & Others
amn_bl.png
Sports
amn_bl.png
World
  • SCMP
  • Asia
amn_bl.png
Video
  • Korean Storytellers
  • POPKORN
  • Culture
  • People
  • News
amn_bl.png
Photos
  • Photo News
  • Darkroom
amn_NK.png amn_DR.png amn_LK.png amn_LE.png
  • bt_fb_on_2022.svgbt_fb_over_2022.svg
  • bt_twitter_on_2022.svgbt_twitter_over_2022.svg
  • bt_youtube_on_2022.svgbt_youtube_over_2022.svg
  • bt_instagram_on_2022.svgbt_instagram_over_2022.svg
  • Login
  • Register
  • Login
  • Register
  • The Korea Times
  • search
  • all menu
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Photos
  • Video
  • World
  • Sports
  • Opinion
  • Entertainment & Art
  • Lifestyle
  • Finance
  • Business
  • National
  • North Korea
  • 1

    Revised Japanese textbooks distort wartime forced labor, catching Korea off guard

  • 3

    Actor Yoo Ah-in once again apologizes for alleged drug use

  • 5

    Korea to ease entry rules to boost tourism, domestic spending

  • 7

    Gold price nears all-time high amid financial jitters

  • 9

    Ramsar wetland in Han River cleaned up for protected birdlife

  • 11

    North Korea unveils tactical nuclear warheads

  • 13

    BTS' Jimin tops Spotify's global chart with 'Like Crazy'

  • 15

    Over 1,000 financially vulnerable Koreans apply for new emergency gov't loans

  • 17

    Suspect identified in Nashville school shooting that killed 3 children, 3 staff

  • 19

    Ra Mi-ran, Lee Re to lead fantasy drama 'The Mysterious Candy Store'

  • 2

    Chun Doo-hwan's grandson apprehended at Incheon Int'l Airport over drug use

  • 4

    Clock ticks for China's massive repatriation of N. Korean defectors

  • 6

    'My ID is Gangnam Beauty' to be adapted into live action series in Thailand

  • 8

    BMW launches new XM

  • 10

    Civic groups in Gwangju await meeting with Chun Doo-hwan's grandson

  • 12

    CJ CheilJedang sees chicken as next big seller after frozen dumpling

  • 14

    2024 budget to focus on tackling low birthrate

  • 16

    From IVE to NCT DOJAEJUNG, K-pop hotshots brace for April chart race

  • 18

    INTERVIEWChoi Min-sik, Lee Dong-hwi on creating Korean-style noir with 'Big Bet'

  • 20

    Samsung Pay partners with Hana Financial to issue student IDs

Close scrollclosebutton

Close for 24 hours

Open
  • The Korea Times
  • search
  • all menu
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Photos
  • Video
  • World
  • Sports
  • Opinion
  • Entertainment & Art
  • Lifestyle
  • Finance
  • Business
  • National
  • North Korea
Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Thoughts of the Times
  • Cartoon
  • Today in History
  • Blogs
  • Tribune Service
  • Blondie & Garfield
  • Letter to President
  • Letter to the Editor
Thu, March 30, 2023 | 10:59
Race in Korea: bad, but better?
Posted : 2012-11-19 17:10
Updated : 2012-11-19 17:10
Print PreviewPrint Preview
Font Size UpFont Size Up
Font Size DownFont Size Down
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • kakaolink
  • whatsapp
  • reddit
  • mailto
  • link
By Casey Lartigue, Jr.

Shin Chul-ho's "Racial discrimination in hiring teachers" reminded me of a pleasant Korean-American teacher I worked with in the 1990s who said she was delighted to meet me.

The reason? She said she couldn't wait to meet "the black man who wasn't really black." Educated, good credentials and not a criminal is what she and the Korean employees in a special three-day program I had designed were told about me. "He's black, but not really black," my recruiter friend told them and other clients. "When you meet him, you won't even remember that he's black."

Because Koreans I talk with almost automatically tell me that things are similar in other places, I gleefully concede without argument that Koreans aren't alone in tripping over racial language or of being outright prejudiced.

Back in America, I would occasionally have Caucasians tell me that I "just happen to be black." Just happen to be black? According to my birth certificate issued by the state of Texas, both of my parents are "Negroid." So I don't just happen to be black, at least according to the state of Texas. It would have been a surprise, if not a miracle, if I had been anything else.

During the 1990s, Koreans who were less certain than Texas about my racial background would tell me about how dangerous, terrible and dirty blacks are. I remember during the 1990s when newspaper ads in local English language newspapers openly sought white and blond teachers.

A Korean friend at the time was so outraged about a TV commentator repeatedly calling a black woman ugly (she was singing in Korean on the show) that he called the station numerous times to complain. Caucasian friends said that Koreans told them they would shake with fear and cross the street at the sight of a black person.

A Korean friend who was the manager of a hagwon asked me if I knew any white American teachers she could hire. She insisted she wasn't racist, said she greatly admired me. She was worried about her job because her students had been complaining about her hiring Brits, Africans and Australians.

I applied for a part-time job on a TV show seeking someone to talk about sports in English. I had been a sports editor on the Harvard Crimson and I am still a sports nut. A representative of the show called asking if it was true that I am black (I never got a call back). I received similar calls, mainly from Korean-Americans who said they didn't want me to waste my time waiting.

Of course, whenever I mention this kind of thing, I am reminded by Korean friends and talking buddies about the racial homogeneity of the country, notorious crimes committed by black soldiers ― and I remember the fury about a special on the 5th anniversary of the 1992 riots in Los Angeles in which some blacks bragged they had "won" because Koreans had abandoned their businesses.

There is enough history to justify almost anything so I don't argue. Still, I'm not sure how to answer blacks who email me, asking about Korea's current racial climate and if they should seek employment here. Terrible and great? Bad, but better?

As my own visa expires next year, I realize that I am not immune to the concerns I am emailed about sometimes. I try to keep things in perspective. Blacks I would run into during the 1990s had worse stories than my own.

One friend who was a fluent Korean speaker told me he was leaving Korea out of disgust after overhearing so many racist comments in Korean. My handful of slights didn't seem worth mentioning based on stories I heard from others, especially when I had so many many positive experiences.

In some cases, the compliments that sounded awkward were meant to be compliments, I know. I will never forget the friend of a lady I was dating in Korea years ago who, after meeting me, gushed to her lucky friend, "He's not black. He's cute!" I'm sure the state of Texas would have disagreed with the first statement, but it seems that more Koreans would agree with the second statement these days.

The writer is a Visiting Scholar at the Liberty Society in Seoul. He can be reached at caseyradio@daum.net.

 
Top 10 Stories
1Korea to ease entry rules to boost tourism, domestic spending Korea to ease entry rules to boost tourism, domestic spending
2[INTERVIEW] Can art become stable investment source? INTERVIEWCan art become stable investment source?
3Korea moves to shorten COVID-19 isolation period to 5 days Korea moves to shorten COVID-19 isolation period to 5 days
4Will dismantling oligopoly result in successful bank industry reform? Will dismantling oligopoly result in successful bank industry reform?
5Fintech, lifestyle products can help Korea grow trade ties with Hong Kong: city's trade promotion chief in Korea Fintech, lifestyle products can help Korea grow trade ties with Hong Kong: city's trade promotion chief in Korea
6Generation Z entrepreneurs turn oyster shells into trendy dish soapGeneration Z entrepreneurs turn oyster shells into trendy dish soap
7Celltrion chairman vows to develop new drugs, initiate M&As Celltrion chairman vows to develop new drugs, initiate M&As
8Terraform Labs co-founder's extradition could be delayed more than 1 month Terraform Labs co-founder's extradition could be delayed more than 1 month
9Ex-journalist to lead NK defector support foundation Ex-journalist to lead NK defector support foundation
10Seoul participates in Asia's biggest smart city expo in Taipei Seoul participates in Asia's biggest smart city expo in Taipei
Top 5 Entertainment News
1'My ID is Gangnam Beauty' to be adapted into live action series in Thailand 'My ID is Gangnam Beauty' to be adapted into live action series in Thailand
2From IVE to NCT DOJAEJUNG, K-pop hotshots brace for April chart race From IVE to NCT DOJAEJUNG, K-pop hotshots brace for April chart race
3[INTERVIEW] Choi Min-sik, Lee Dong-hwi on creating Korean-style noir with 'Big Bet' INTERVIEWChoi Min-sik, Lee Dong-hwi on creating Korean-style noir with 'Big Bet'
4Ra Mi-ran, Lee Re to lead fantasy drama 'The Mysterious Candy Store' Ra Mi-ran, Lee Re to lead fantasy drama 'The Mysterious Candy Store'
5[INTERVIEW] Ahn Jae-hong on playing underdog basketball coach in 'Rebound' INTERVIEWAhn Jae-hong on playing underdog basketball coach in 'Rebound'
DARKROOM
  • Turkey-Syria earthquake

    Turkey-Syria earthquake

  • Nepal plane crash

    Nepal plane crash

  • Brazil capital uprising

    Brazil capital uprising

  • Happy New Year 2023

    Happy New Year 2023

  • World Cup 2022 Final - Argentina vs France

    World Cup 2022 Final - Argentina vs France

CEO & Publisher : Oh Young-jin
Digital News Email : webmaster@koreatimes.co.kr
Tel : 02-724-2114
Online newspaper registration No : 서울,아52844
Date of registration : 2020.02.05
Masthead : The Korea Times
Copyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.
  • About Us
  • Introduction
  • History
  • Contact Us
  • Products & Services
  • Subscribe
  • E-paper
  • RSS Service
  • Content Sales
  • Site Map
  • Policy
  • Code of Ethics
  • Ombudsman
  • Privacy Statement
  • Terms of Service
  • Copyright Policy
  • Family Site
  • Hankook Ilbo
  • Dongwha Group