Korean Job Discussion Forums

[butlerian]

As the OP of a former thread entitled "Korea is a good place", some of you may be surprised by this thread. I still maintain that Korea is generally a good place, but unfortunately it can often appear to be a place of extremes - that is, extreme kindness followed by extreme rudeness or even racism.

I decided to take a trip to Cheonan this weekend with a Canadian friend of mine. After a few drinks at a bar downtown, we decided we'd take a look at a night club since the small town we live in doesn't have any. However, our taxi driver was quickly told by the bouncers at three different clubs that waegooks are not allowed entry. Two of the clubs were called Suzi (?) Night Club (downtown) and Holiday.

It's amazing how such blatant racism exists in a country like Korea. We certainly didn't look offending - other than being white - and did nothing to provoke the kind of responses we got. For those living in Cheonan, is this normal? To end this thread on a positive note, however, we did meet a very friendly and kind Korean guy who took us to a different place that did let us in.

[4 months left]

Welcome to Korea, do you really care? Korean nightclubs are horrible anyway.

[Ozabout7or8]

I was also unfortunate enough to experience being rejected from the door of a nightclub in Cheonan because I was white. This was in 2005.

It is dissappointing that this kind of thing is allowed to persist in 2007. Of course many clubs all over the world spend alot of time trying to attact the right people and getting their 'crowd mix' right. I have been rejected from clubs in Auckland NZ during my Uni days when they decided the mix of males/females inside was out of kilter so they only let in females for an hour or so until the mix changed.

Sexism and racism are quite similar you will agree, because the person being denied has no way to change the aspect of themself that is undesirable to the club or place they are rejected from.

The law sometimes doesn't reach everywhere, even in NZ which is considered one of the least corrupt nations on earth.

[Qinella]

I was getting out of the car with a couple friends the other night and a Cadillac full of black people was driving slowly by on the adjacent road. The driver said "say something", which got my attention and I looked over at them. Then the two people in the back seat yelled out to us:

- F*ckin' white boys!
- Stank-ass crackas!

It was a downtown area where the whole thing is laid out in blocks, so my friends and I walked over to the porch to wait for them to circle around back. We saw them turn right once, but I think the standard geometrical design of the city block confused them and they couldn't find their way back to us.

Racism be everywhere cracka.

[jlb]

Sadly, the biggest problems with racism (at least a few months ago) here in Cheonan seem to be with the foreign population. It works both ways, it's definitely not just the Koreans.

[indytrucks]

I live in Cheonan, and I've been to both of those clubs on several occasions. I've never been turned away for being foreign. It can help if you have a Korean friend with you when you go rather than some taxi driver.

[TheUrbanMyth]

[Hater Depot]

I think I remember this board being not up in arms when certain clubs started denying Nigerians.

[Adventurer]

[indytrucks]

[Adventurer]

[Seoul_Star]

As other posters said, you aren't missing anything at all by being denied entry into Korean clubs. They don't hold a candle to anything back in most civilized western cities, or even Tokyo, Bangkok, Hong Kong, etc.

There are a few reasons for them not letting you in:

1. They are afraid that you will be unaccustomed to the way they do business, and because of the language barrier, a misunderstanding (paying the bill, ordering drinks, sitting where you are not supposed to sit etc) may occur.

2. They are afraid that testosterone ridden, soju-filled Korean men will start an altercation with you, and a problem will ensue. Or vice versa.

3. They hate white people, and all foreigners. They are afraid that if they let you in, and Korean men see you there, they will stop coming to that club and spending money.

4. They heard stories about other places where foreigners went in, and caused problems, and thus caused those places to lose customers/face/reputation/whatever. So now they refuse entry to all foreigners.

5. They are Korean people, being Korean.

[doggyji]

Wasn't there a thread about some Canadian club that won't let black men in right on this board? It seems clubs tend to be the most picky at the entrance for whatever reasons.

[jaganath69]

[ChopChaeJoe]

Me, I don't want to go to a place that won't let in black or white people.

Go somewhere else, dude.