Cultural Difference or Just Plain Wrong?

Websites like Taboo Korea discuss many of these topics.

Living in Korea, often I will realize I approach things from a Western perspective. In some instances this amounts to cultural insensitivity, in others, I know the events taking place are absolutely morally repugnant, regardless of cultural differences. Since I have made many posts  about the best things in Korea, I think it's time for a nice little rant about the things we sometimes pass off as "cultural differences" regardless of how bigoted, biased or barbaric they might seem. A good friend of mine put it in a way that I think everyone can understand.

 He said "Any aspects of any culture across the globe that directly or indirectly cause harm or put people down should not be respected in my opinion. It's time we put ALL people (and animals') welfare first. Fuck it if it's offensive to go against some of those cultural norms."


1. Corporal Punishment. When I first came to Korea I saw kids holding planks, doing wall sits and push ups. In my mind it was pretty innocent until I started seeing the extremes. In 2010 corporal punishment was banned in Korean schools. This lead to major backlash and protests from teachers who swore it was good for building character and an essential part of growing up in Korea. I cannot get behind this. Recently I have witnessed a teacher who punished students quite a bit: first it started as hand smacks, being forced to hold objects and quickly escalated to strikes, blows, hair pulling and scratching. This is NEVER acceptable. In what world do we think it's okay to teach people that bad behavior should be curbed by being beat? Many Westerners are keen to say "well this is just part of Korea" yet they admit if they saw the same treatment at home, they would be outraged and immediately report it.

2. Shame/Rape/Abuse. I have encountered women and children (both Western and Korean) who have been the victims of sexual, physical and mental abuse, but will not report it because they genuinely believe it will be shameful to Korean culture. This is not to say these things don't happen at home, of course they do, but the minor "punishments" for rape and abuse aren't too motivating for the victims to report. It seems as if their best interests are not taken to heart. Although the law states greater sentences, the average is 2-3 years or 10 for foreigners, if the rapist is even sentenced at all. In Korea, rape is often seen as a slap on the wrist with many cases being thrown out before even approaching trial or being "settled out of court."  In 2013, the definition of rape was changed for the first time to include men and children. Meaning it didn't become a gender neutral law until very recently,when the laws became slightly more strict. Does this mean men deserved more protection than their female counterparts? Or that there was little help for male/child victims before this law? Often I hear my Korean friends attribute rape to foreign men and soldiers, while ignoring the mass amount of Korean on Westerner rapes. Usually when these women make a report, they are told "oh, well you were drinking" "many western women have a reputation" or "we are simply too busy and there are many cases like this." I have been with friends who reported assault only to be told their Korean was not good enough and maybe their rapist simply misunderstood their intentions or the way they dressed. Many of these cases lead to the creation of organizations like Seoul Survivor Services, which provides English language medical, legal and counselling resources for survivors of sexual assault in Seoul. The cases and issues are outlined in the piece, Raped in a Foreign Land.


3. Acceptance of racism and extreme nationalism. This has been a huge one for me. All too often we are okay saying  "Korea is so young, so small so...blah blah blah, they don't understand." This is ridiculous and makes the assumption that all Koreans carry these prejudices (which they don't) or are too "sheltered" to make their own judgement. Black face is widely used, many students refer to minorities with brown skin as "dirty" and  people are entirely too comfortable saying that Koreans are the only pure race. If you've ever heard the term, "One Blood, One People" you may have overlooked the implications of such a statement and assumed it was merely being patriotic rather than both xenophobic and nationalistic. The obsession with pure blood is one of the worst afflictions in Korea.The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is concerned about Korea and  "the emphasis placed on the ethnic homogeneity that might represent an obstacle to the promotion of understanding, tolerance and friendship among the different ethnic and national groups living on its territory." This attitude causes cultural pride to the point of arrogance and makes it much easier to assume a superiority complex as opposed to promoting racial/cultural harmony

What about you? Have you observed anything that you believe is too easily passed off as a cultural difference? Send me a message or comment below!