By: Brittany S
As
an American citizen from the Midwest living in Korea, I have found some things
about Korean (and Eastern culture in general) culture to be very similar to my
own. However, there is a lot that is
very distinct of our respective regions and at times, they clash.
For anyone who has done any research on
Koreans’ perspectives on foreigners in Korea, you know that Koreans are
generally accepting of us being here, but they have their preferences (the
closer you are to the Eurocentric standard of beauty—particularly blond hair,
blue eyes, the better), as well as their restrictions (they really dislike when
foreigners date their women). Because of
this open, but close-minded mentality, oftentimes, Koreans struggle to
understand the African American population.
People of all ages (from my elementary school students to the random old
lady on the bus stop) always TELL me that I am African, particularly S. African
(as that is the only African country that can hold an English teaching position
here). Also, given that a Eurocentric standard
of beauty of being thin as a rail, pale as a ghost, and having long, straight,
silky hair doesn’t exactly match an Afrocentric one of “my Black is
beautiful” and being curvy is actually being a GOOD thing and curly hair that grows
towards the sky, there have been plenty of times that I’ve caught people
taking pics of me or rubbing my skin as if I’m some freak of nature. All of
this simply because they just don’t understand how I came to be.
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| They were once afraid to be near me, now they hug me daily. |
So here I am, the only little
chocolate chip in the cookie, being the spokesperson of not only my country,
but of my ethnic heritage (I’ll let you figure out which voice is louder). Any opportunity I get I make sure to stress
that America has more than “Susans” and “Toms,” but people like Jamal, Keisha, Miguel,
Muhammad, Fangbai, EunHwa, Pierre, Natalia, and others make up our “melting pot”
as well.** It’s particularly important
to me that they understand that Black people are a HUGE part of American
society, and that White people do in fact live in S. Africa. When I teach, I make sure to encourage my
students to love their Asian selves and stop trying to look White. I also try to open their eyes to other countries
beyond Japan & China, or Britain & Australia. I want them to see value in other people and
places, and not just think of them as “other.”
I recently had the pleasure of hosting one of my former students in
America. She was so open and curious
about me and (my version of) American life that I just gave her as much of it
as I could in our short time together.
My former student (who is now a
sophomore in college and my friend) came to stay with me for the 9 days that I
was in America and enjoyed every minute of it.
Although her English speaking is not the greatest, her comprehension and
willingness to try are stellar. It was
funny watching 95% of my family BUTCHER her name, even though I said it slowly
several times. They all decided to give
her a nickname (her whole name is the length of my first name, yet they gave
her a nickname) to avoid any further slaughter.
They embraced her as a part of our family, and made her feel right at
home with love-filled hugs. Here are the
things we did:
Visited
most of my relatives (all grandparents, parents, and most of my aunts and
cousins): here she was fed everything
from a hot link and vinegar chips to spinach artichoke dip and lasagna; all of
these foods are not common in Korea and definitely go against her Korean diet. I warned her about weight gain!
 |
| With my Granny. No visit is complete without a grandmother's cooking! They are almost the same height and color! We aren't so different after all... |
Went
to “Sweetie Pie’s”: I figured this was the quickest way
to get her to a soul food spread. I had
her to try the cabbage (since Koreans eat kimchi=fermented cabbage), she didn’t
like it but she devoured everything else.
 |
| Hey Mikey! I think she likes it! :-) |
Went
to the St. Louis City Museum and Dave & Buster’s: There’s a big kid in all of us and no matter
what language you speak, we all like large playgrounds and arcades :-)
 |
| My sister got stuck! |
Went
SHOPPING: Oh c’mon, who DOESN’T go shopping in another country?! Also, Koreans are REALLY into fashion. She felt proud that she will go home with
exclusive “American style” clothing.
 |
| I would soooo love to see someone wear these... |
Visited
my university: she had never seen a
university so big (mine has its own zip code) and my home from my school and
her’s from her’s are equidistant (2hrs), yet she makes that commute daily for
classes and we consider that distance “away from home.”
 |
| With my mommy :-) |
Went
to a Step Show: Stepping is popular
among African Americans and is one of our ancestral ties to the Motherland. I thought it would be interesting to show her
that although we incorporate Africa in our culture, that we are in fact
different. Her eyes lit up. She recorded videos and everything.
Went to a Korean restaurant & noraebang (singing room): It was nice to give her the taste of home she was missing while exposing my family to my new culture.
  |
| (L) I missed the family-size portions in Korea :-( (R) I don't think she was ready for how passionate we get with a mic. |
Went
to a club/party?: NOPE. Poor baby was so tired
from all our running around that she slept in.
 |
| Lucky! I had to DRIVE everywhere! |
Taught
her how to play “Bones” (dominoes) and do “The Wobble” and others: I was proud of her! We need to work on her trash talking haha but
she was timidly calling her points. And
here’s a little secret—Koreans love line dancing, too! Go to a Korean club and see! So now she knows how to do OUR line dances.
Went
to Steak n Shake, Jack in the Box, Sonic’s, Wendy’s, & IHOP: I had to let her know that America has more favorites
than McDonald’s, Burger King, Baskin Robbins, and Dunkin Donuts (all found all
around Korea). Each time she ordered a
lot of food and finished it all! In
Korea, the most I’ve ever seen her eat was an order of samgyupsal (Korean BBQ
that looks like thick bacon)!
When
I asked her what she thought about everything and how she was doing, her eyes
always seemed enthusiastic, and although she couldn’t say more than “GOOD!” I
knew she was loving her time in my world and that when she returns to Korea,
she will be one more voice for Black people, Black Americans, and Americans in
general. All it takes is an open mind
and heart and the rest will follow. If
you have the opportunity to enlighten someone about something very important to
you, I encourage you to do it. Each one,
reach/teach one. She’s my “one” in Korea. But I’ll be here another year. Who’s coming home with me next?
**This
is in no way meant to stereotype people, rather, to speak to the popularity of
these particular names among certain races in America.
