Korean Job Discussion Forums

[dbee]

So I have a question for all those parents of bi-racial kids in Korea (by bi-racial I mean mainly Korean-Western kids). It's something that I've had on my mind for a while now and I was hoping to get other people's ideas on it.

Do you think that it's safe/wise to bring up a bi-racial kid in the Korean school/military system ?

I'm mainly concerned about the bullying point of view in the schools here. Even adult Koreans aren't exactly known for their ability to accept foreigners into the Korean culture. And there is a latent anti-foreigner sentiment here at the best of times IMO.

What chance would a kid have, being brought up in this environment ?
Do you worry about it at all, or is it something that isn't such a big deal ?

[itaewonguy]

[just because]

I too have had major worries about this issue...

This is one of the reasons that is preventing me from committing to living here for a long time as I love my girlfried very much but it would be heartbreaking for me to see my child grow up in a culture of victimization just because they are not pure...

I know korea is changing and in time will slowly become more accepting but it is still hard for me as I won't be moving back home if i marry due to my girlfriends job.

I too am curious if people have positive experiences of bringing up children here....not about the school system just living in society in general

[BigBlackEquus]

I worry more about what will happen when the NK/SK thing comes down. What happens when the two open up to each other, and people mix? Will we be seeing some NK guys with an anti-foriegner grudge start slamming our pregnant women against the ceiling to kill the mixed-race baby in their womb? This sort of thing has reportedly happened when a NK woman became pregnant with a Chinese baby. I forget where I saw the story.

Will they try to kill our children, or us?

Somehow, I don't feel like the SK gov't would offer foreigners much in terms of protection once the walls come down.

I worry more about sticking around immediately after the walls came down.

Will the SK people and NK people be caught in a massive nationalistic flurry once they come together, and suddenly go on an "I have foreigners-- purge them all" binge? It makes me wonder.

[Yim]

[BigBlackEquus]

Welcome, Yim. I just returned from Thailand a few weeks ago (vacation).

Yes, farang-mixed kids are celebrities in Thailand. Here, it's sort of situationally-dependent. Times are changing (so I read and hear).

Korea is a racially volitile place, however. It can go either way, in a big way. You can literally be walking down the street (if you are white, which I'm not) and have total strangers go out of their way to be your best friend. Keep walking down that same street, and you could be spit at by some drunk ajosshi on a power trip, or your Korean girlfriend called a hooker/yankee_slut for daring to walk with you (not by a drunk person, necessarily).

These examples may sound extreme, but things like this DO happen to people on this board. It's one of the many reasons why so many people don't finish their contracts here.

If you are a mixed/black person, however, you will likely be ignored or not given any special treatment. Or just scowled at. It really depends.

A lot of how you are treated will depend on how you dress, act, look, and your age. And if you are with a female, how she looks, or her age.

The worst are the middle-aged men with broken lives that didn't amount to much, and hold a grudge against life. Second to that are the young men who either can't get a date, or are players and are jealous of your ability to date women over them 'because you speak English.' Foreigners are easy targets for their rage, and they know it, because the local police will nearly always side with the Korean if a fight breaks out.

Secretly, I am waiting for that day when some Korean guy says the wrong thing in the wrong place, with no one to back him up or see what happens. That man will feel the full brunt of a very large black man's fury, which has been simmering over many months in this racist culture.

[Real Reality]

Safeguarding Amerasian kids from bigotry of our society
"In the past, most Amerasian kids were the offspring of an American GI and a Korean woman, mostly a sex worker. But nowadays, mothers are not typically sex workers. They have a relationship with an American GI which didn't work out. Many are abandoned when the American soldier leaves Korea," Lee said.

Nonetheless, the hardships their children have to endure because of their unusual mixed parentage and looks have not changed much.

One out of 10 Amerasian children drops out of elementary school and the rate doubles in middle school. Over 80 percent of the children are from single-mother families, and they face prejudice and discrimination not only at schools but also at workplaces.
"Children of Korean-black or Korean-southeastern Asian mix tend to have more of a hard time than those of Korean-Caucasian origin, reflecting the bigotry of our society," Lee said.
by Lee Sun-young, Korea Herald (December 23, 2004)
Full Title of Article:
[Ordinary People Extraordinary Lives]Their stories...(4) Safeguarding Amerasian kids from bigotry of our society
http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/SITE/data/html_dir/2004/12/23/200412230026.asp

Biracial People Face Discrimination in Korea
In Korea, where everybody has black eyes, straight black hair and yellow skin, biracial Koreans face discrimination because of their appearance, they look different.

Moreover, they are treated differently, with indirect words and in indirect ways, people are reluctant to accept them as members of our society, only because they are biracial.

With an increasing number of Koreans marrying non-Koreans, the number of biracial people is growing. But the inhospitality and discrimination against their children have not changed with the times, and Korea is still a country where biracial people face difficulties.
By Kim Rahn, Korea Times (May 20, 2005)
http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/200505/kt2005052020230153460.htm

Discrimination plagues migrant children
But Yi Ran-joo, a senior official at the Bucheon Migrant Workers' Home, says, "Schools that foreign children attend will have to develop a curriculum of international understanding. An understanding of foreign countries and mutual respect will help solve the problem."
by Min Seong-jae, JoongAng Daily (April 25, 2004)
http://joongangdaily.joins.com/200404/25/200404252243110879900090409041.html

[chiaa]

[rapier]

[Mr. Pink]

[chiaa]

[fidel]

[Mr. Pink]

[Cheonmunka]

My son's name is ... Oh .... . His middle name is his mother's family name.
He is well liked in our community. Later, when he goes to elementary school I'll pay a visit to his class. this way the kids get to know me, the strange foreign guy who speaks to us like our teacher. It should pre-empt any untoward behaviour.

I don't see any problem. I don't agree with the scaremongering articles people throw around. Actually, life is what we make it and most of the articles I read, while having some truth for some people, hold very little for me and my family's situation.

I went to the sport's day the other day and most people tended to ignore me as they would anyone else. Nobody is out for the revenge or whatever else only maniacs dream up and rant about.

[chiaa]

It is amazing how many of you people on here assume what you like and see what you like. George Walker Bush. My god he has two names before his surname. One of them is a damn middle name! It is not two names. There is nothing wrong with George Gwanhuk Bush. That's still one name and one idenity.

What is wrong with even a full blooded Korean kid having a western name? Will he stray away from his culture? Will be grow up a Korean hater? Will be not be able to eat Kimchi? I think it is just plain wrong for a child to have two names. The kid is going to have a rough enough time growing up being biracial--I am not looking to compound it (for those of you that think he will have no problems, get real and open your eyes)

My wife does not want out son to be educated in Korea (wonder why). That's how I know that he will not be educated in Korea. The poop in the zip lock was just an example--a very true one at that. Ask around (and by the way, do you have any idea how difficult it is to change schools in this country? ask your wife how they decide who goes to what school in the area). One thing is for sure if he went to Korean schools, my boy will be the number one student at memorizing and pronouncing some paragraph in English so he can impress all the ajoomas in the neighborhood. I bet he will be the only one that understands it as well. Hey, he might even be able to explain it to his so called English teacher. While they are at it, I hope they drill some nationalistic propaganda into his little head and have him hating different races and nationalities with out thinking critcially why he should hate them(take a look at the Korean teacher's union for more on this). I wonder being a US citizen and all, will he be part of the school choir that will be singing the Fucking USA song. They might even "honor" him by giving him the lead part.

Sure Korea and its schools made my wife who she is. Let me ask you this, how many male Korean friends(not family members or your wife's friends) do you have?

Yeah Korean is absolutely barred at our house. If the little tike even attempts to speak Korean his v-chip sounds an alarm alerting me to get out the wire hanger and start beating him and his mother for such blasphemy.