Racism in Korea (Part 2)

Racism isn’t limited to being charged extra or being refused service. Young Koreans are just as guilty, though perhaps in a more innocent way. For some Koreans, having a foreigner friend can make them seem worldly. They’ll brag to their other friends that they have a foreigner friend; you essentially become their pet in a handbag.

Guys and girls will date foreigners just to learn English. Korean guys will try to hook-up with foreign girls to add a ”notch in their belt.” Foreign girls, especially Americans, are perceived as slutty, and we are approached as such. Foreign men are seen as sexual devients, trying to steal away the poor, innocent Korean women.

And if you’re a foreigner dating a Korea, be prepared for stares. Mixed race couples, while becoming more common, are still seen as an oddity. The automatic assumption is that the Korean is dating the foreigner to learn English. If a Korean girl is dating a foreigner, the couple will get dirty looks because they think that the girl is a slut. If it’s a Korean guy and a foreign girl, the foreign girl will be thought of as a slut. There have been many occasions where my boyfriend and I have gotten hate glares from people. It should be noted here that most of these assumptions and glares come from older Koreans.

My boyfriend is Korean and I’m an American foreigner. Even though we met in the US and have been dating for more than a year and a half, my Korean friends still try to warm me that he is dating me to learn English. Why do they keep telling me this? Because it is such a common practice for Koreans to date foreigners to learn English. I became mad at one of my students who was going to study in the US when he told me that he wanted to date an American just so he could learn English. What’s worse about this is that Koreans who do this don’t even see it as wrong.

This video is about 2 years old and caused a firestorm when it came out. MBC never apologized for its racist content and things like this still air on Korean news.

In summary, not all Koreans are racist, and to think as such is blithely ignorant. Yet racism does exist, and it’s a huge problem. Korea’s government is pushing for more foreign tourism and foreign businesses to enter Korea. They are riding the Hallyu wave and are encouraging its growth, which is great. Yet, if Korea truly does want more foreign tourists and foreign business, it must stop letting these racist attitudes go unchecked. Being barred from a restaurant, bar, club, or taxi simply because you are a foreigner is simply unacceptable. These businesses need to be held accountable for their actions if Korea really does want to become a part of the globalized world.