South Korea
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If a Nuclear Bomb Falls on Seoul, Where Do You Cook Pork Belly?
“If a nuclear bomb falls on Seoul, where do you cook pork belly?” How are South Koreans talking about North Korea’s nuclear threats? This is another question we get asked very often. Here’s a rather ingenious take from a South Korean start-up, Geekble.
North Korea: Brother, Enemy, Not My Problem
Everybody in South Korea knows the song “Our Dream is Unification.” I sang it in elementary school. I watched as Kim Jong-il and then South Korean president Kim Dae-jung sang it in Pyongyang at the first-ever inter-Korean summit in 2000. And I unwittingly teared up when Park Geun-hye, the recently
S. Korea Has a Female Foreign Minister. But "Women Are Still Inferior."
Segye Ilbo reporter Kim Ye-jin was having dinner on Sep. 14 with fellow journalists covering the foreign ministry. A high-ranking ministry official was also present. This wasn’t unusual; it’s typical for journalists reporting on government ministries to dine with officials. But unusually, Kim wrote about the
The End of DACA: Is South Korea Ready for a Wave of Deportees?
Update (Sep. 15, 2017): Since this piece was published, reports have surfaced that Donald Trump is close to sealing a deal with congressional Democrats to write DACA into law in exchange for increased border security funding. There are different interpretations of what this means, and uncertainty over the future of
Not So Klean: Carcinogenic Substances Found in S. Korean Menstruation Pads
South Korea is not a cheap place for women to have menstrual periods. It may not be the safest either. Top-selling menstruation pads in the country were recently found to contain toxic and cancerogenic substances. In March, a feminist civil group released the results of a chemical analysis on 11
Dog Meat: Not Your K-Food Poster Child
Dog meat is a part of Korean cuisine and as well-known internationally as kimchi, but unlike kimchi, it’s not not on any K-food poster. Understandably so. It’s an ugly pus in South Korea’s global branding machine, and it resurfaces whenever there’s a
Young S. Korean Speaks: "What the Fuck is North Korea's Problem?"
On the eve of the 69th anniversary of North Korea, outsiders are watching for any sign of threats from Pyongyang. Many are asking what young South Koreans think about these threats. We bring to you the passionate voice of a young South Korean: Guk Beom-geun is the founder of
Keep the Disabled Out: Tyranny of the 'Normal'
On Sep. 5, residents in Seoul’s Gangseo district gathered at a local elementary school to discuss the future of a public real estate project. On the one side were the parents of children with disabilities, who wanted a school specially adapted to their children’s needs. On
The "Mad Bitches" of S. Korea's Irregular Workforce Fight Back
For sixteen years, Pak Geum-ja was a cafeteria worker at a public school in Suncheon, South Korea. She worked next to appliances that made so much noise that she began to lose her sense of hearing. Her job wore her down so much that her mouth was constantly full of
Inside the North Korean Military: The Plight of Women
Just over 10 years ago, North Korean defector Lee Da-eun would not have imagined munching on fried chicken topped with gooey cheese, at a faux-military restaurant surrounded by ammunition and gas masks. Back then, she was more familiar with slaughtering a chicken or holding a real gun, working for the
The Mosquito Trucks of Childhood Past: Where Are They Now?
Opaque, white steam trailing behind loud trucks were a routine sight in many a childhood around the world. In South Korea, too, trucks would wail out siren sounds while emitting disinfectants and children would chase after the trucks through narrow alleyways, breathing in the foul-smelling gas. Used as a pesticide
KÉ Journalism School: What the Students Taught Us
One class, Sewoong and I were talking to the KÉ: Journalism School students about how journalists use social media. We were talking about Twitter, showing them the tweets and retweets, why it has been effective, what it means in the world of news. Then we asked them if they