On Al Jazeera's The Stream: How is South Korea dealing with the growing multiculturalism?

[turdferguson.livejournal.com]

From Aljazeera's The Stream: A multi-cultural, multi-ethnic society is an emerging reality that is leading to a lot of racial and social discord in South Korea. Faced with an aging population and an influx of migrant wives, many are clinging to their “one-blood” ethnically homogenous national identity. Today the government is scrambling to focus a sound multicultural vision for the country. How are South Koreans adapting to their rapidly changing population?

Things that were brought up:
1. The differences between multiethnic, multiracial, mixed heritage, multicultural
2. Ethnic Korean, "one blood"
3. Brief history of Amerasians, which is very important in adding to Korea's multiculturalism
4. History of immigration to Korea
5. Southeast Asian women who become mail order brides to South Korean men
6. How multiethnic and multiracial children fare in the education system (the little Psy got hate because he's half Vietnamese)
7. Xenophobia, racism and other attitudes towards foreigners
8. Expanding the definition of Korean identity as the population is becoming more diverse. (America needs to expand on what American identity is too, I feel like ethnic groups talk about it a lot but we don't all come together and talk about our shared identity hmmph but anyway)
9. Are Koreans proactive in accepting multiculturalism?

AL JAZEERA ENGLISH shoutout to pivotandsway for showing this to me

We probably won't get to see the effects of multiculturalism until this new generation of mixed heritage children gets older. Watch the video! Are you mixed heritage/multiethnic/multiracial? What are your thoughts? Whip out your annotated bibliography, scholarly journal articles (jk) and discuss.

Comments

[4minutesluts.livejournal.com]

related: http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2013/05/20/2013052001160.html

[21banged.livejournal.com]

Bangladesh was the most racially intolerant with 71.7 percent of respondents there saying they did not want to have someone from another race as a neighbor.

Cannot say I'm surprised by this, especially given the current stage of Bangladesh :\

[dapo322.livejournal.com]

That was a good clip.

I'm not multiracial/multiethnic, but I guess I'll talk about the American identity issue.

I just think with all the different races/ethnic groups here that what it means to be American will not the be same for everyone. The only thing that I think of that would be that at some point in time a family member(s) came from some other country and moved to the US.

I mean I was born here and so I'm American, but also I'm a child of immigrants so even though I'm not that fluent in the language and not that tied to the home culture (Haitian), I still identify with being Haitian and see myself more as Haitian-American and not just American.

I know for some people American = white. I guess what you are talking about is having people see American as more than just white OP? or am I wrong?

[turdferguson.livejournal.com]

I know for some people American = white. I guess what you are talking about is having people see American as more than just white

pretty much. the american people are multifaceted and multicultural and it doesn't reflect our governing body. we are underrepresented in so many ways. i wish i could be more eloquent on this but it's 2:30 am lawl. but maybe people dont take the time to talk about american identity because it's such a complicated topic and it would force people to look at the harsh truth of what makes the country the way it is and why some of its own citizens are historically disadvantaged and treated like shit

[lainmyownworld.livejournal.com]

"America needs to expand on what American identity is too, I feel like ethnic groups talk about it a lot but we don't all come together and talk about our shared identity hmmph but anyway"


honestly the only time i feel the ~american people come together is when something gets bombed/shot
its really sad..

[e-bone (from livejournal.com)]

Even then they'll make sure to play up/point up the "otherness" of the perpetrator. The recent Boston Marathon bombings are a great example.

Re: My opinion and my experiences in Australia and Japan

[4minutesluts.livejournal.com]

a fun game for non-australians is to look up notable events in race relations in australia and guess when they happened, and usually find out you guessed a few decades too early

[angela-derp-otp.livejournal.com]

I have mixed heritage, my mom's side is Mexican and my Dad's side is Irish, my family was born in America but honestly most of the times I have a hard time /feeling/ American, because my fellow Americans (no slander but usually white people), made me feel like I didn't belong here, mainly because i'm a POC, and adding to that the fact that I don't sound 'american' because my accent is fucked up from years of moving around the world and living in like 13 different countries and learning more than one language.

I also get a lot that 'the way I speak (as in my speech) is weird and doesn't sound 'fluent'sometimes, which I guess is true to some extent because even I find myself mixing languages in my head and not just that but people in Ireland, England, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand speak english VERY different (imo) and I'm kind of a mix of all that when it comes to English. So that takes away some American points, I guess?

Like Korea, I think language is such a huge deal here in America, but the thing is 'AMERICAN ENGLISH' you know? like people is so intolerant to foreign accents or atypical accents, is ridiculous. It was so frustrating for me back in high school because English is my first language and is like I didn't speak English good enough for American standards omg.


Funny though, my experience is the complete opposite to my older sister for example, and our lives were basically the same, except I had to go through certain shit she didn't had to go through because she looks as white as she can get with blonde hair and all and of course she gets a free pass in ~AMERICA~. My younger sister has lived in Mexico for a long time now and she identifies herself more as Mexican, and tbh I sometimes feel more welcomed in Mexico than in my own country because even if my spanish sounds weird people is not as critical.


My boyfriend who is a half japanase/half white came to America as an inmigrant and his first language used to be japanese, but he used to look pretty 'white' so he adjusted just fine because people didn't give him shit for not having a good English, unlike his sister who looks straight up Japanese and people used to give her the whole fob/'ching chong' crap.

I think is very difficult to place 'American'as a shared identity because we all have very different experiences as part of this society and all these experiences are heavily colored by race/ethnic circusntances.

Of course I do identify myself as American but I feel is just like, the country I was born, not because I feel like I belong here. And America is such a paradox because even though we were build in multiculturalism and immigrants our society has such a hard time embracing multicultural-not white America.


Now that I'm expecting a baby i'm like getting worried about this because my kid is going to be a helluva mix and i'm pretty sure she/he will have to deal with the same shit my boyfriend and I deal with, and it sucks.

EDIT: JFC THIS IS LONG LMFAO SORRY I HAVE TOO MANY FEELINGS OK? :(

[benihime99.livejournal.com]

Congratulation lil' mama
I know that's not the point here but somehow it just feels me with joy (I guess I'm having those iwanttohaveababy feelings again)

[itskimbitches.livejournal.com]

I have no idea what it means to be American, Lbr there's no definition. If u from nyc you'll have a way of living, Florida another way and la another way. I'm only American outside America tbh and I'm fine with that but inside ppl identify with their parent's culture which is logical. Nothing specifically belongs to the American culture its just a washed down version of other cultures tbh.

[lainmyownworld.livejournal.com]

I'm only American outside America


+1

[bolingi-aii.livejournal.com]

great post OP!!
Ill read it after classes today

[phililen3.livejournal.com]

As a South African of mixed cultural ancestry, I have had to hide what part of me is.
People here are like South Koreans in their racism, xenophobia and general intolerance. There is also a huge superiority complex that people have and it seems like they get the kicks out of looking down on others. Even in people of my generation. I think it is partly learned behaviour. In a country where you can talk freely about hating foreigners in a public space and have people agree with you or not bother to correct you/put you in your place, this hate is not going to change any time soon.

[4minutesluts.livejournal.com]

I still remember that louis theroux documentary in south africa where he went to an AWB rally and they had a literal ww2 german nazi who was in the luftwaffe speaking and they didn't really get why that was strange

[4minutesluts.livejournal.com]

if it makes anyone feel better i'm white in a majority white country and don't really feel any national identity except to be embarrassed about something incredibly stereotypically new zealand (the attention shrek the sheep got should be a national shame)

[look alive sunshine (from livejournal.com)]

I am sorry,this is off-topic but i just googled "shrek the sheep" and i can't stop laughing. but hey if it makes you feel better i am tunisian and the baguette gun man(yeah you just read that) becoming a national sensation was
worse.

[heijihatsutori.livejournal.com]

I'm a Malay living in Malaysia for the whole of my life, and we at Malaysia basically lives the multiculturalism, since there's Malay, Chinese, Indian, and the ethnics that makes up the majority of West Malaysia. So while the whole hate-thing and racism are not as big (this is still a fairly peaceful country I say) it is definitely there. When I got the offer to go to a college in West Malaysia my parents were so worried because of the per-conceptions and mindset people have in the peninsular about the West Malaysia.

In the case of my family, I grew up in a state where Malays is the majority and thus despite the whole multicultural thing I see on TV and learn in History, it didn't really give that much of a meaning (or more like I can't even begin to comprehend it; since there's lack of interaction between races where I live).

So when I went to college and basically meets people from every race and ethnics, it's obvious from observation that despite the label of multicultural nation or whatever, people still tend to befriend people with the same race instead of mix around. Sure, this doesn't apply to everyone; there's one group in class that consist of every race possible and it's sad imo when people look at them like it's something abnormal.

I honestly think Malaysia needs to improve on this; so that says something for other countries that have general intolerance overall. Why can't everyone just get along. :'(


I don't think I actually make my point across because I'm fail like that so tell me if you need elaboration or anything. Sorry this is crazy long I just don't know what to do with all the feels /cries

[phililen3.livejournal.com]

Same thing at my University. People stick to their own race groups. It is hard to penetrate a group that you are not a race member of.

[e-bone (from livejournal.com)]

I'm glad this segment addressed the pros and cons of approaches to multiculturalism applied globally in Korea. There are so many people (myself included) who tend to analyze things through a strictly western perspective, not taking into account that we're culturally very different. It's a nice reality check.

My anecdote on American Identity: When I was in HS my mom went to parent teacher conferences and my math teacher asked her if English was my first language. My mom asked "what the hell are you talking about?" Apparently this teacher was concerned about my vacant stares and reluctance to speak up in class. It's interesting that she didn't even consider that I didn't understand the material or was just quiet, but that I was foreign (even weirder, it was AP Algebra and my grades were great). Anyway what I took from that experience is that if you're brown and don't talk, you're not American.

I believe it's everyone's right to claim their identity, but it seems to me the darker you are, the more likely you'll be asked to prove it.

[torontok.livejournal.com]

I have a similar anecdote. When I came to Canada, we had to take aptitude tests to determine where we would be placed in the system. I scored in a high percentile so I got put in the same grade as others my age. However, in middle school, the next year because I was still in the window of "new immigrant" I got put in "easy" classes with kids who were dropouts or generally in the lower end of the grade spectrum. When my parents complained, they were told "we're just doing it to ensure your daughter is at a suitable skill level". I had to take a proficiency test (which I kicked ass on) before they put me in regular classes a month later.

[miyozari.livejournal.com]

Probably off-topic but whenever I watch documentaries like these (or read articles) I'm afraid to go to SK. It's not even the conservative mindset (e.g. women or homosexuality issues), which turns me off, because ngl my upbringing was conservative, too. Though I tolerate stuff and don't go around badmouthing everything.
But because of the racist attitude. I ain't a pretty white gurl with blond hair and blue eyes and the irony is, I was born in Germany, I have a German pass and my German is better than the German of my fellow kids with a German family but I have a southasian heritage. I have black hair and my skin is slightly tanned. Though my Korean acquintances always try to give me a heads up, it ain't that bad and the younger generation is more tolerant and welcoming.

Oh and concerning the American identity issue (I take the English advanced course in school and our English classes love to talk about America's issues), it's so ambivalent. I've written dozens of essays about it and yet it's so difficult to grasp. I'd use the term negative integration, I feel like Americans are great at marginalizing and excluding. But what is it to be American ? Do you have to be born there or live there...however there are plenty of people outside of America, who idolize this country more than its citizens.

Oh and concerning Germany, not perfect but it's good. I enjoy my life in my city. Though there are still some left-over Nazis and Grannies, who give you strange looks. But a few streets ahead, you'll probably meet someone from your country or a cute granny. But I'm pretty sure, if I would live in a small town or village, I'd...go crazy. I love the fact that I have friends from different countries and only about 2 or 3 German friends, lmao.

[turdferguson.livejournal.com]

Americans are great at marginalizing and excluding

haha yes. this has been proven historically. when a new immigrant labor force comes in, the americans love to use them as scapegoat for any economic problems. maybe it's the same in other countries too?

[torontok.livejournal.com]

I grew up in Pakistan with multi ethnic parents (Pukhtoon mom, Punjabi dad) and in all honesty, I never felt like my identity was ever a big deal. Pakistan has a lot of different enthnic groups so intermingling tends to happen.
In Canada however, the divides were a lot mroe pronounced, You couldn't be Pakistani, you were Pukhtoon, Sindhi,Balochi, Kashmiri and you were supposed to stick to your group. My siblings and given a lot of flack because we spoke Urdu but looked Pukhtoon. it's all such bullshit really.

[mjspice.livejournal.com]

Oh you're Pakistani? Same here!

Yeah I get what you're saying. It's totally ok in Pakistan. I rarely go there but not once was I called out on being from Karachi etc

But here in Oman, even tho being Pakistanis we gotta stick together, there's is always that, "You're from Karachi or you're from Lahore etc" bs that goes on sometimes.

If that's not enough problems, then the Omanis would just classify you as "Indian" or "Kharjiin", which is kinda like "gaijin" in Japanese (don't know what they say in Korean).

But to be fair, it's not just Omanis but everyone who do that. People all around the world classify each other like this: Asians are "Chinese", Blacks are "African" or White people are "Americans". It's just dumb all over.

[mjspice.livejournal.com]

Southeast Asian women who become mail order brides to South Korean men

This just bugs me so much. I can't understand the system of mail order brides really.

[torontok.livejournal.com]

it's gonna become a lot more prevalent in Asia due to the inevitable shortage of women that's gonna occur. Asia alone is said to have 163 "missing women" who we're never born to to rampant sex selection. South Korea is one of the countries affected so its not surprising.

[pon-pon-pink.livejournal.com]

iäm mexican-german and honestly, it's the best thing in the world.
i was bullied in elementary because i was one of the only non-germans in my class but my parents always helped me and let me know how good it is to be mixed. now those people who used to bully me are rotting in our small town while i'm livin my life, speaking roughly 5 languages and havin fun!
Also i feel like the part of germany i' living in has been much more accepting towards foreigners so it's more a cool and interesting thing to be foreign and you don't get that much hate.

[benihime99.livejournal.com]

"speaking roughly 5 languages"

let me hate you for two seconds

[kazu-kumaguro.livejournal.com]

Some (older) Koreans say 'looks like a Korean' as a praise, as much as I don't think they mean anything bad I think we can all sense the superior complex.
I wonder if Japanese are the same, I was a bit surprised when my friend said something like 'those people are Chinese, so they most probably are breaking the rules' though, as he has a good education background and supposedly pretty nice.

[heartsolid.livejournal.com]

Great post OP! Can't wait to watch video after my shift at work. I'm glad this subject has been brought up. And I'm loving all the comments so far.

My mother is Native American/White/Black and my father is Black/Native American. My family is pretty diverse - with marriages involving asian, white, and hispanic heritage. I was always proud of this but whenever we were out in public - being close to the deep South - people weren't always happy seeing such a sight and would (still do) took it upon themselves say/do racist/inappropriate things. As a child, I would often hear my mother's side condemn her for not continuing to "purify" the race with more NA gene, or in the very least, the white gene. They'd pick at my curly hair or my brown skin and tell me such things like "stay out of the sun, don't get any darker." In school(before college) it seemed I was always forced to choose a "side" but at the same time feeling not fully included in any "group" - the constant "what are you?" "can I feel?" "you ain't black enough to understand!" "do you speak in tongues too?" "You can't speak about this issue because you're not fully XYZ" "Um...my mom said I can't hang out with you because your skin is too brown" etc and etc

Call me naive, but I've always thought that cultures/ethnicity/race are so interesting and so beautiful and I never understood people's decision to be truly bias in their own to the point of disrespecting and looking down at another's.


Edit - lol I feel a little embarrassed and a bit OT now ~

[turdferguson.livejournal.com]

haha dont be embarrassed i think we're all just sharing personal experiences now.

[turdferguson.livejournal.com]

a lot of narratives i've come across about non-white americans going back to their 'native country' is about just how obviously american they are when they step outside of america, it's definitely interesting.

[tryxkittie.livejournal.com]

I fucking love al jazeera. real journalism tbh

[mjspice.livejournal.com]

This really.

[realme21.livejournal.com]

Could anyone define Korean dream?
Is there such a thing?
Also, as long as the older generation are not educated about this matters, discrimination will prevail.
Nonetheless, how is a foreigner different from a multiheritage Korean who lives in Korea?
There are a lot of aspects that must be tackled if we talk about this.

[heartsolid.livejournal.com]

Ia with this. I found this interesting - My father teaches at a university and they have quite a few international students from Africa each year. Many of them have confessed that they do not and never will view themselves as the same as African-Americans and will tell anyone in a heartbeat they should be able to tell the difference.

Before they come to study here in America, they are often warned from officials (don't remember official name) not to associate too much with African-Americans because apparently we are "lazy, unmotivated, misguided and have a lost identity as a culture." And that our cultural ties are too far away from African cultural knowledge. They are encouraged to befriend white people because they will help success.

This isn't to say this is the case for EVERY intl student, but I thought hearing from those students was pretty interesting and unfortunately I've heard similar stories from the intl students in my college.

[shanny-w.livejournal.com]

even if you're multicultural but you look indistinguishable from the "1 blood koreans" you still get found out and hated on? damn, why do people have to look into other peoples history. it's creepy.

[turdferguson.livejournal.com]

Judging from this post it's easy to see why there can't be a distinguishable American identity. As a society we tend to be individualistic rather than collectivistic. There's less emphasis on "we're all in this together" and sometimes it can really feel like "every man/woman for himself/herself." I don't think that's going to change any time soon.

[breeezies.livejournal.com]

I read that first paragraph and all I could think is, Harry Potter, half-blood, pureblood, mudblood...

[dapo322.livejournal.com]

Funny you say that because in a media class I took last semester some1 did that for their final project and linked it to real life racial divisions. The class was on race and ethnicity in the media. I'm not an Harry Potter expert, but maybe that's where JK Rowling got the idea to do that in her books.

[hisjulliet.livejournal.com]

Great video, thanks OP for posting it, and thanks to pivotandsway for recommending it! Imo it should stay at the top of the comm. I think it’s a very important issue worth discussing here.

When it comes to figuring out what exactly is the American identity, I believe it really depends on each American’s opinion about how they view their country. Because the U.S. is so big, I can see why it's sometimes hard to put an exact finger on what really is the American culture. To me personally however, American culture is all groups of people coming together as one (I see it as the 4th of July, minus all the overly patriotic people). I see the American culture as multicultural, so pretty much America’s culture is America itself – a blending of all different types of people; this blending also includes all the different types of languages, clothes, food, and music. Whether you were born here, raised here, or planning to live here in the near future, as long as you love the U.S. and consider/want to consider it your home, you are an American, to me.

I sometimes get upset when foreigners think of America as a whole bunch of white people, and when they say that someone is “half American”, they really mean that person is “half white” (even though “American” isn’t even a ethnicity in the first place). It upsets me because even though I was born here and raised here all my life, outsiders don’t consider me an American. I do not need to know that when I’m sometimes not even considered a real American in my own country.