Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Mashimaro]

It bugs me when people misuse the word 'foreigner'. Every thread you read 'foreigners' do this, 'foreigners' think that. Face it, what you are really saying is "me and my english teacher buddies think this."

Let's face it, most people here (including) me don't know squat about the lives and difficulties of many foreigners in korea.

Some might say it's easier to type 'foreigner' than 'english teacher', but if you are speaking for yourself and your small circle of friends why extrapolate to the 500,000 non koreans working in korea. Are you really speaking for the Bangladeshi DDD working or the prostitute from a country you can't even pronounce.

Most English teachers work in richer area where the hagwons tend to be and are clueless to lives and struggles of those not lucky enough to 'qualify' as english teachers. People complain that koreans stereotype and are ignorant to diversity. How many non americans have been called 'miguk' simply because they are white. Seems many on the board are the same, seeming no need to make the distinction between ESL tourists/teachers and everyone else.

Repeat after me 3 times.

You are not the centre of the universe
You are not the centre of the universe
You are not the centre of the universe

Some people may well be in shock after reading that last part. don't worry a further month of thinking only of yourself should see you right.

[shakuhachi]

Typical uppity DDD english teacher foreigner opinion.

[animalbirdfish]

And oddly enough, from my experience, the factory workers (predominately of the Sub-Continent) do a far better job of learning the Korean language - mostly from screaming Korean bosses no doubt - and making some rudimentary effort to integrate themselves into Korean society - at least insofar as Korean society will allow them to do so.

[rapier]

I hate the word foreigner, I just do. To me it has so many negative connotations and no positives. I dislike it when I'm labelled a waegook by Koreans.
The world is small and getting even smaller. None of us are foreigners on this planet.

[ladyandthetramp]

[Apple Scruff]

"Foreigner" applies to people who are not Korean. Most teachers are not Korean, therefore they are foreigners. Factory workers from Cambodia are not Korean, therefore they are foreigners. I can decipher for myself whether someone is speaking for all foreigners or just his band of friends from Winnipeg.
I enjoyed your rant about a word.

[pet lover]

This post serves no purpose.

[djsmnc]

At least they don't call us aliens like we call people in our home countries.

[dogbert]

I don't believe I've ever referred to someone as an "alien".

[deeluvskitties]

i agree with apple scruff. i say foreinger to mean people who aren't from korea who are in the same situation as me. but i also know how to recognize when it is being used to desribe anyone who isn't a korean citizen. the funny thing is, when i'm at home in toronto, i would NEVER say foreigner (let alone "alien") to describe someone who isn't from canada. it sounds too negative (what a double standard - it's too negative to describe else but not too negative for me to use on myself!) i tend to say "minority" to mean foreigner at home, which is kinda funny.. because often times, the 'minority' ethnicities makes up the majority (ie. at a coffee shop i worked at, or at my university).

[nev]

In the context of this board, it's usually pretty clear when someone refers to foreigners that they're referring to the English teaching community.

If I was on the Bangladeshi factory worker internet forum, I would of course take greater care in using the correct word.

[cheeky monkey]

i think it's interesting that, although many people have pointed out that not all foreigners in korea are white, no one has mentioned the fact that the majority of white foreigners in korea are not english teachers. yes, i am referring to the 37,000 american soldiers stationed in this fair country. although i do think that within this board the term foreigner can certainly be used to describe the group that subscribes to it, i think it is important to remember that we are not the only ones living in korea who are experiencing similar feelings of "outsidedness," homesickness, and loneliness. and unbridled ecstatic joy.

and by the way, although i do work for an english teaching company, i myself am not an english teacher.

maybe you should just call yourselves E.T.'s, because alien [foreigner] is already implied

[Ya-ta Boy]

Wouldn't it be counter-productive to call ourselves English Teachers unless we add another word to acknowledge the fact that there are lots of Korean citizens who are also English teachers?

Since some people here on this board feel 'foreigner' has negative connotations and other people seem to feel 'alien' refers to outer-space creatures, that kind of leaves us with 'non-citizen'.

That way we can make sentences like: "I was talking to one of my non-citizen English teacher friends and another non-citizen person who is not a teacher the other day (both are terrestrial beings, however)..."

Personally, I often refer to those-people-like-myself-who-we-are-trying-to-come-up-with-a-label for as 'way-gooks', even though I know it is bad Korean. The term seems to fit our special circumstances and relays the right idea.