Ten Thousand Things

"Ten Thousand Things" is a Buddhist expression representing the dynamic interconnection and simultaneous unity and diversity of everything in the universe.

Hines Ward's Legacy: Catalyzing a Change from “Homogenous” to Multicultural Korea

Posted by Jean Downey on April 25, 2006


In step with other nation-states re-evaluating past historical policies of imposing standardized sameness on their citizenry and ostracizing those who don’t fit the mode, the Korean government is now doing some soul-searching, because of a visit by Pittsburgh Steelers football player to Korea this year.

Learning about this story of wonderful transnational multicultural social change, I had the sense that the visit of Ward Hines, who puts a successful, handsome, up-beat, and human face on "mixed" people, was a wake-up call for many people in Korea, who were "ready" for the change towards inclusiveness and acceptance he is catalyzing because the response is so quick and large. It seems as if Hines pushed this historical moment to critical mass.

Ward Hines grew up in an African-American neighborhood, ashamed of his Korean mother, who struggled with speaking English, couldn’t help him with his homework, and made him take off his shoes before entering his house.

After a divorce, his mother, Kim Young-hee, worked three jobs to support her son. When they visited Korea in 1998, “even Korean people who looked educated spat when we walked by."

However after being named Most Valuable Player after the Steelers won the Super Bowl, Hines has been welcomed with open arms in Korea, and he is channeling this emotional outpouring towards him to support hyphenated children in Korea, partnering with Pearl S. Buck International:

He's hoping his story will encourage South Koreans to show more tolerance. "They didn't have a choice to come into this world as a biracial kid," he says. "If you can welcome me — a guy who doesn't speak the language — you can do it for them."

South Korea's 5,000 Amerasian children born since the Korean War have struggled to fit into a society that takes prickly pride in its 99%-plus ethnic homogeneity.

Teased and bullied, 9.4% of Amerasian children drop out of elementary school; another 17.5% quit middle school, according to Pearl S. Buck International. As adults, more than 45% are unemployed or work odd jobs to get by, the Buck organization says…

"This Hines Ward phenomenon is very positive," says Seoul resident Jung Young-ja, 72. "We've been proud of our homogenous society. It's time to change."

South Korea has little choice: Already more than 10% of South Koreans marry foreigners — mostly brides imported from poorer Asian countries. The country has 35,000 "Kosians," offspring of a Korean and a parent from elsewhere in Asia; they are expected to emerge as a voting bloc over the next two decades, says Song Young-sun, a South Korean legislator.

So Ward is helping prepare South Korea for its multicultural future: "That guy has no idea how much good he's doing," says Janet Mintzer, president of Pearl S. Buck International.<>

Ward was born March 8, 1976. A year later, his American GI father took his Korean bride and his young son back to the USA. But the marriage quickly disintegrated. A court, convinced Kim Young-hee didn't have the language or job skills to support a child, gave custody to Ward's father.

But Kim didn't give up. She stayed in the USA, working three jobs and saving everything she could. When Ward was 7 or 8 years old, he came to live with her. The change was traumatic: He was moving from an all-black neighborhood to a mixed-race community in suburban Atlanta and into a household where he and his mother could barely communicate.

Ward excelled in athletics but still struggled to find an identity between two cultures. When he was a teenager, Kim recalls, Korean neighbors recruited him to join their basketball team for a tournament and excluded him from the celebration afterward. "They used him," she says. "I cussed them out…"

The Korea Herald has begun a 10-part series on recent multicultural social change in Korea with an excellent introductory overview, "Korea greets new era of multiculturalism" by Shin Hae-in:

Shin attributes Ward’s April 2006 to the Korean government’s decision to grant legal status to people of "mixed" heritage and their families. And to to address prejudice and discrimination against them, starting with labels:

The term "mixed-blood people" was changed to "people of international marriages" in future government documents.

Furthermore, the government is reviewing plans to give citizenship or residency status to those who marry Koreans and to their children. And school textbooks that describe Korea as a "nation unified by one bloodline" will be changed to one that has a "multiethnic and multicultural society..."

Shin's article includes a great overview of historical background, social change trends, and new policy proposals:

...many Koreans acknowledge that Korea is a homogenous nation. They often learn that from elementary school textbooks. In its 5,000-year history, Korea was repeatedly invaded by neighboring countries, including Japan and China. Thus, placing emphasis on "pure Korean bloodlines" was crucial for the survival of Koreans.

But Korea's long history is now turning into a burden, as national pride in being a single-race state is driving discrimination and prejudice against those who are not "pure Korean."

About 800,000 foreigners make up Korea's population of 48 million. The number of foreigners is expected to reach 1.5 million in the next five years, according to government data.

Moreover, there are rising numbers of mixed marriages in Korea. The number is increasing due to rural women moving into cities, leaving young farmers and fishermen to find brides from other Asian nations, particularly in Southeast Asia.

International marriages now make up 13 percent of all marriages in Korea. More than 30 percent of international marriages are unions between rural men and foreign brides.

According to Pearl S. Buck International, there are about 35,000 mixed-race individuals in Korea. About 15 percent of all newborns in Korea are from mixed marriages. That figure will likely double by 2020, the foundation said...

Many Koreans, though, exhibit prejudice against foreigners and mixed-race Koreans, especially those with a darker complexion.

The government has been slow to catch up with the changes, which resulted in the passing of discriminative and unfair measures against those who don't have "pure Korean blood."

Current law states that a foreign woman cannot bring her family to Korea unless her Korean husband approves.

Due to illegal organizations working as matchmakers for international marriages, many women become victims of marital violence or fake marriages. In the case of divorce or death of the husband, the women's children cannot become Korean citizens or receive welfare benefits.

Also, current law forbids foreign workers from switching jobs without employer agreement. Thus, many foreign workers have to remain at their current jobs despite low pay and difficult working conditions. They also can't accompany their families during work travels to Korea.

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