Gwangju and South Jeolla International Magazine September 2022 #247 JunLeadingWoong-taeKoreaintheModernPentathlon
Tel: 062) 222-0011 ▶ Areas of Specialty Contracts, torts, family law, immigration, labor ▶ Civil & Criminal #402 Simsan Bldg, 342-13 Jisan-dong, Dong-gu, Gwangju Next to Gwangju District Court Fax: duckheepark@hanmail.net062)222-0013 Tel: 062) 222-0011 Attorney Park’s Law FirmAttorney Park’s Law Firm Services available in Korean, English and Chinese Attorney Park Duckhee Former judge, member of GIC board We're ready to serve your best interests in legal disputes. We provide a ordable consultation & representation.
David E. Shaffer Editor-in-Chief GwangjuCity all
Other important events in the festival include the first Buskers World Cup, the Food and Culture Showcase, and the Chungjang Parade. Read all about them all in the Community section.
and
Coordinating with these seasonal temps, the Gwangju News offers you a “cool” issue of information and enjoyment for the entire month.
Remember to remain vigilant and stay Covid safe, and enjoy this month’s Gwangju News!
NewsSpecial thanks to Gwangju
When thinking of sports that Korea excels in, the pentathlon is not one of the first to come to mind – but that is about to change! In both the Olympics and world cup competitions, Korea has been amassing pentathlon medals, and leading in the medal count is super-athlete Jun Woong-tae from Gwangju City Hall. Read our cover-feature interview with gold medalist Jun.
Our third feature is not so joyful. George Katsiaficas (who you may remember as a researcher on the 5.18 Gwangju Uprising) relates the life of his friend and activist, “Jimmy” Kyaw Min Yu, who was recently executed by the Myanmar military.
of our sponsors. From the Editor For volunteering and article submission inquiries, please contact the editor at gwangjunews@gic.or.kr. Cover Jun PhotoWoong-taecourtesyof the Korea Modern Pentathlon Federation (대한근대5종연맹). Gwangju & South Jeolla International Magazine THE EDITORIAL TEAM Publisher Dr. Shin Gyonggu Editor-in-Chief Dr. David E. Shaffer Managing Editor William Urbanski Chief Copy Editor Isaiah Winters Layout Editor Karina Prananto Photographer Kim Hillel Yunkyoung Online Editor Karina Prananto The Gwangju News is the first English monthly magazine for the general public in Korea, first published in 2001. Each monthly issue covers local and regional issues, with a focus on the roles and activities of the international residents and local English-speaking communities. Copyright ©2022 by the Gwangju International Center. All rights reserved. No part of this publication covered by this copyright may be reproduced in any form or by any means – graphic, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise – without the written consent of the publisher. The Gwangju News is published by the Gwangju International Center: Jungang-ro 196-beon-gil 5 (Geumnam-ro 3-ga), Dong-gu, Gwangju 61475, South Korea Tel: (+82)-62-226-2733~34 Fax: (+82)-62-226-2731 Website: www.gwangjunewsgic.com Email: gwangjunewsgwangjunews@gic.or.krgwangju_news Registration No. 광주광역시 라. 00145 (ISSN 2093-5315) Registration Date: February 22, 2010 Printed by Jieum 지음 (+82)-62-672-2566 September 2022, Issue 247 Published: September 1, 2022
As usual, there is much, much more on offer within the pages of this month’s issue. At this juncture, the staff of the Gwangju News wishes you, your family, all of Gwangju, and all of Korea a very happy Chuseok holiday!
The revolving door is currently opening on the month of September, allowing in a cooling breeze unfamiliar to the sultry summer. Heralding this cooling are the seasonal terms of White Dew (백로, Sept. 8) and the Onset of Autumn (추분, Sept. 23), and we must not forget the biggest autumnal holiday of all: Chuseok (추석, Sept. 9–12).
Read about Numun-dong residents’ discontent with the slow but ongoing redevelopment project (see Lost in Gwangju). Traveling outside of Gwangju, you will be interested in Sacheon and the fabulous view from its coastal cable car (see Around Korea).
Piqued by the upcoming World Festival of Memories, this editorin-chief reflects back on education in Korea when he first arrived on the peninsula half a century ago (see Language Teaching).
The Asia Content and Entertainment (ACE) Fair is opening this month, and the Chungjang World Festival of Memories is coming up this October. Find out how you can participate in the Back in the Day (When I Was Young) photo competition.
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As the temperature cools down, activities heat up. Coming soon to Gwangju is the annual World Human Rights Cities Forum at the Kimdaejung Conference Center. This year, the forum will be focusing on human rights in relation to the climate crisis. Read what one of the main speakers, Kim Gi-gon, has to say on this topic.
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By Kim Hillel Yunkyoung
Photo of the Month The Photographer Kim Hillel Yunkyoung is a priest of the Anglican Church here in Gwangju and also a portrait photographer. More of his photographs can be found at Instagram @hillelkim “I pray, I pray….” One fine autumn night in 2020.
gwangjunewsgic.com 2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju 3 01. From the Editor 04. Gwangju City News 06. Jun Woong-tae: Leading Korea in the Modern Pentathlon 12. Why Human Rights in the Climate Crisis Era? 15. Rest in Peace “Jimmy” Kyaw Min Yu 18. Lost in Gwangju: Redevelopment and Its Discontents in Numun-dong 22. Around Korea: Namhae and the Sacheon Cable Car 25. Everyday Korean: Episode 57. 손이 큰 사람이구나 You are generous! 26. Language Teaching: Teaching English Back in the Day – A Korean Retrospect 30. My Memories Are a Movie: A Different Kind of Chungjang Festival 33. ACE Fair Opens in Gwangju 35. Empower, Seek, Adapt – “Rise Together” at Gwangju’s Refugee Women Bazaar 38. Expat Living: Fear No More! Our Trip to Chosun University (Pediatric) Dental Hospital 40. A Triumph for Pedestrians 42. Food and Drinks: Delightful, Delectable Local Cuisine – Customer-Friendly and BudgetFriendly Eatery 02. Photo of the Month 44. Music: Top of The Drop 47. Upcoming Events for September 2022 48. Photo Essay: Only Me and My Camera: Capturing Beautiful Places Around Korea 52. Book Review: Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo 54. Comic Corner: Alan and Me – Episode 15. Beondegi Curry, Part 2 56. Crossword Puzzle Contents ISSUE 247, September 2022 TRAVELNEWSFEATURESCOMMUNITYTEACHING&LEARNINGCULTURE&ARTS gwangjunewsgic.com 2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju
▲ Sluice gate installed near the Yongsan Bridge.
2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju gwangjunewsgic.com 4 4 NEWSMONTHLY From the Gwangju Metropolitan City Press Release ( http://gwangju.go.kr ) CityGwangjuNews
As a result of analyzing the statistics of firefighting activities in Gwangju in the first half of this year, the Gwangju Fire and Safety Headquarters announced that the number of fire, rescue, and first aid activities increased by 5.4%, 2.1%, and 17.2%, respectively, while the number of daily safety dispatches decreased by 34.2% compared to last year. There were a total of 410 fires, an average of 2.2 cases per day, and the number of casualties was 16, up 33.3% from 12 in 2021. Property damage was 1.62 billion won, down 75.9% from 6.74 billion won in the previous year.
Accordingly, Gwangju City is making efforts to reduce the sewage odor by visiting waterway sites in other cities and provinces that are similar to Gwangju Stream, to check odor prevention facilities and establish maintenance plans. In addition, Dong-gu and Nam-gu plan to reduce sewage odor near Gwangju Stream annually by 2024 by implementing a Smart Sewage Pipeline Project to establish a real-time sewage odor monitoring and automatic control system using information and communication technology (ICT.)
Fire Department Safety Dispatches Decrease
Gwangju to Improve the Malodor of Gwangju Stream
As factor in the increase in the number of fires is due to increased social activities following the relaxation of social distancing due to COVID-19.
Gwangju Metropolitan City is focusing on preventing bad odors arising from the Gwangju Stream by installing sluice gates near the Yongsan Bridge in Dong-gu. Gwangju Stream, running through downtown Gwangju, is used as a leisure spot for Gwangju citizens because of its promenade and bicycle path, but the stench of sewage from some open rainwater rooms near Yongsan Bridge is causing an inconvenience to citizens.
Non-residential locations such as restaurants and industrial facilities accounted for the largest number of fires with 164 cases (40%), followed by negligence in 214 cases (52.2%), electrical factors in 84 cases (20.5%), and mechanical factors in 40 cases (9.8%). A total of 3719 rescue operations were carried out, an average of 20.5 rescue operations per day, which is an increase of 75 cases (2.1%) from the same period last year.
Significantly
In particular, 1,103 confirmed cases related to COVID-19 were transferred, and a total of 2,764 people, including 1601 suspected cases of high fever and cough, and 60 vaccinated patients, were transferred to hospitals and quarantine facilities.
In order to alleviate the difficulties of single-parent families where the parent has to take responsibility for housework and childcare as well as work to support the family, City Hall conducted a pilot project for 20 households last year, and then expanded it to 100 households this year.
Received
o Applications and inquiries concerning support services are accepted at the Nam-gu Family Center. Phone: (070-42046314).
The 2022 Korea Regional Book Fair in Gwangju Dong-gu, a great festival for local books in Korea, will be held at Purun-gil (Green Road) Park during September. The Korea Regional Book Fair is an event held every year by the Korean Regional Publishing Association and local governments across the nation to highlight the value and meaning of local publishing, which records local culture and discovers local contents.
Single-Parent Family Support Service Well
Nationwide Book Fair to Be Held in Dong-gu in September”
Inquiries: Humanities Urban Policy Division, Dong-gu. Phone: 062-608-2193 Gwangju Dong-gu (East District) News
The target of support is (a) single-parent families raising children under the age of 18 with less than 120% of median income* and (b) the sole parent is working or studying, or is ill or has a disability. The service provides support for housekeeping service fees (within 45,000 won per session) used through a private domestic helper platform, and each household can receive support of up to 1.6 million won throughout the year.
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The main program is an exhibition by the winners of the Thousand Readers Awards, which are awards of prize money prepared by 1,000 readers who support local publications, the Exhibition of National Publications and Magazines, and the Special Exhibition of the Host City. The book fair provides opportunities to enjoy a variety of book-related events, including author book talks, a book market, and a bookmaking experience.
*Median income of 120% or less: 3,912,100 won per month for a two-person household, or 5,033,640 won per month for a three-person household.
The 2022 Gwangju Dong-gu Korea Regional Book Fair, which started in Jeju in 2017 and is celebrating its sixth fair this year, will be held from September 30 to October 2 under the theme of “Regions and Books, Caring for Each Other.” It will be held as a fun humanities festival where citizens will communicate naturally with books.
The Single-Parent Family Housework Support Service, promoted by Gwangju Metropolitan City, has been shown to be well received by single-parent families. As a result of an online survey conducted in July for the households who used the single-parent family support service in the first half of this year, City Hall announced that 97% of users said they were satisfied with the service. In this survey, where 65 out of 73 users responded, 97% of the respondents said that housekeeping services helped improve their homelife and that they were satisfied with the methods and procedures for using the service. As for the things that improved from using the housework support service, they felt more relaxed because their house was clean, so there was less stress at home and their quality of life improved. They also found that with a cleaner house, they could deal more positively with their children, thus all are happier.
Jun Woong-tae Leading Korea in the Modern Pentathlon
▲ Jun Woong-tae celebrates his victory of winning bronze, the first-ever medal for Korea in the moden pentathlon, at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
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“Any person who is able to finish such a competition is an excellent allaround sportsman, regardless of whether he wins or not.” — Baron Pierre de Coubertin, 1911 The modern pentathlon may not be as well known of the Olympic sports, but it is one of the most challenging. The pentathlon athlete has to train in five (pentathlon is from Greek, meaning “competition of five events”) sports, namely, fencing, horse riding, swimming, pistol shooting, and cross country running. Although it is called the “modern pentathlon,” it was first held in 1912 in Stockholm, Sweden, to replace the original pentathlon. According to Baron Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of modern Olympics, only athletes who can compete in five sports events are “complete” athletes, as it not only tests physical skills, but also one’s mental qualities. The five sports of the modern pentathlon competition are organized in four events: fencing, swimming, riding, and the laser run (shooting and running). In the laser run, athletes run for 300–600 meters on a cross-country-style course and stop to shoot a laser gun at a target placed at a 5–10-meter distance. They have to repeat the process two to four times. The athlete who crosses the finish line first wins the competition. Each event is worth 1000 points. These events are usually organized for one day. And if possible, all events should take place in one stadium or within a walking distance of each other.
South Korea has been participating in the modern pentathlon in the Olympics since 1964, but it was only 57 years later, at the Tokyo Olympics, that Korea finally won a medal. Jun Woong-tae, who is originally from Seoul but represents Gwangju as a member of the City Hall club, earned a bronze medal for Korea, making it the first-ever medal for the country, and finished the competition with 1,470 points. To Jun, his bronze medal is as valuable as winning gold. However, he aims to have the Taegukki (태극기, Korea’s national flag) fly even higher in future Olympic Games. Aside from the bronze, Jun has also won four gold medals at UIPM World Championships and another gold at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta.
The most recent competition that Jun has taken part in is the 2022 UIPM World Championships in Alexandria, Cairo, held from July 23 to 31. Jun and Jung Ji-hwa won the men’s relay gold medal with 1,427 points and Jun also won a gold medal
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▲ Jun Woong-tae participating in a variety of the disciplines of the UIPM pentathlon.
Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne (UIPM, the International Modern Pentathlon Union) is the governing body, which organizes annual modern pentathlon World Championships as well as a World Cup series. Olympic Games are organized every four years and World Championships are organized annually. Each year, four to six World Cup competitions and a World Cup Final are organized every three to six months. Together, these competitions are called the “World Cup Series.” Each competition can be divided into individuals and relays.
Jun Woong-tae: Hello, my name is Jun Woong-tae, a modern pentathlon athlete. I train under Gwangju City Hall. Nice to meet you!
GN: Could you tell us when you started doing the pentathlon and what drew you to that grueling sport?
GN: You are setting new world records in the modern pentathlon, which is dominated by Western players. The sweat, tears, and hard work that you have shed in the past will pass by as a panoramic picture. Could you share with us your most memorable moment?
in a relay with Kim Sun-woo, finishing at 1,393 points. His winning streak earned the South Korean team the best performance of the competition with two golds, one silver, and one bronze medal. Arriving back in Gwangju on August 8, 2022, he was received by Gwangju Mayor Kang Gi-Jung, who had prepared a special welcoming ceremony to congratulate Jun. A promising and now world-leading athlete, Jun has stayed humble while training diligently. Despite his busy schedule, the Gwangju News recently managed to get a hold of Jun Woong-tae and get to know the man who has helped to create Korea’s pentathlon history.
Jun Woong-tae: I always remember every moment of my competitions, but I will never forget the first time I won an individual medal at the World Championships. I think it was the trigger that made me think that I can do anything. It’s the same feeling as being born again.
▲ Jun Woong-tae won the UIPM 2022 Pentathlon World Cup in Albena, Bulgaria and broke two world records.
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Gwangju News (GN): Congratulations on your number-one ranking and for your men’s and mixed relay gold medal victories in the 2022 UIPM World Championships! Could you please introduce yourself to our Gwangju News readers?
Jun Woong-tae: When I was 13 years old, I was naturally introduced to the modern pentathlon while learning to swim (at the Seoul Sports Middle School). Also, when I was in elementary school, I was very fat, but after I started doing the modern pentathlon, I lost a lot of weight very quickly (laugh).
Jun Woong-tae: Jung Jin-hwa, who was also a pentathlon athlete, is my inspiration.
While we were training together for a long time, I was able to learn everything from attitude to belief and self-management from him.
Jun Woong-tae: I think all athletes feel the most difficult time is when they are injured,
GN: At the 2022 UIPM World Championships in Alexandria, Egypt, South Korea won the most medals, beating Britain and Egypt, with two gold medals, one silver, and one bronze, making it our country’s best performance ever. You personally won two gold medals – in the men’s relay with Jung Jin-hwa and in the mixed relay with athlete Kim Sun-woo. Did you face any difficulties during the competition?
“I will never forget the first time I won an individual medal at the World Championships.”
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▲ Jun Woong-tae (center) wins the gold medal, and another South Korean athlete, Seo Chang-wan (left), wins the silver medal at a 2022 UIPM World Cup competition in Ankara, Turkey.
Jun Woong-tae: There are no events that aren’t difficult in the pentathlon, but personally, I think the laser run event, which is a physical fitness event, is the most difficult. It’s hard during the event, but when I train to run for the event, I feel like I’m pushing my stamina to its limit.
GN: I think you must have had a lot of difficulties in training. What was the most unforgettable difficulty? And how did you overcome that difficulty?
GN: Who is your inspiration or role model in life?
Jun Woong-tae: I am so grateful to my partners because I think that my partners did a great job in the relay and mixed relay, and the good result was because we depended on and trusted each other.
GN: Which of the modern pentathlon events is the most physically and mentally challenging?
GN: Do you have any hobbies or interests that occupy your free time?
GN: As we conclude this interview, do you have any message that you would like to convey to our readers? Jun Woong-tae: Thank you for your support. I will work harder so that the modern pentathlon team of Korea can bring pride to the world! Please give me even more support from now on!
gwangjunewsgic.com 2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju 11 and I also think for me it was the hardest when I was injured. Recovery takes time, but I try to be patient and devote myself to the treatment because my ultimate goal is to recover.
GN: You have already brought much pride to Gwangju and to Korea! We wish you the best in your future pentathlon events, adding bronze, silver, and gold medals to your already substantialInterviewedcollection!by Karina Prananto and Moon Jeong-ah. Special thanks to Coach Yun Il-mo (Gwangju City Hall). Photographs courtesy of the Korea Modern Pentathlon Federation (대한근대5종연맹).
▲ Gwangju Mayor Kang Gi-Jung presents Jun Woong-tae with a wreath of flowers at the welcoming ceremony at City Hall on August 8, 2022, upon Jun’s return from Egypt, where he won two gold medals.
GN: We are curious to see what you will be like in 5 to 10 years from now. Please share with us any goal that you’d like to achieve during that time period? Jun Woong-tae: I want to become an athlete who makes a mark in the history of the modern pentathlon. Rather than thinking about the distant future, I will aim for the 2024 Paris Olympics gold medal first. I will think about other things later.
Jun Woong-tae: In my spare time, I meet my friends, chat, and drink coffee together. I listen to a lot of songs, too! I also like going to a pet cafe with my dogs!
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By Kim Gi-gon
Why Human Rights in the Climate Crisis Era?
Indeed, climate change is directly related to human rights in that it undermines the basis of social and economic life of people, not only the environment, to eventually take a devastating toll on humanity. In this regard, international organizations and society have long dealt with the issue of climate change from the perspective of human rights. Especially, the UN Human Rights Council established a human rights-based thinking system on the climate change in 2007 and issued the Resolution on Human Rights and Climate Change, which expresses concerns that climate change could cause a very extensive and immediate threat to humanity and society. In 2016, the Council called for the integration of human rights approaches into actions concerning adaptation to and mitigation of climate change. In October 2021, it adopted a resolution to recognize climate change as an issue that had a serious impact on human rights. The IPCC’s Working Group II Contribution to the Sixth Assessment Report suggested that the climate crisis had adverse impacts not only on the ecosystem but also on water shortage, the food crisis, health deterioration, urban lives, residence, and infrastructure in many areas. Furthermore, we need to cope with the issue of the life of as many as 20 million climate refugees who have had to leave their homes because of desertification and water shortage derived from climate change. Not only the UN but also international human rights activists have concern over inequality hidden within the climate crisis. The climate crisis has deepened inequality in diverse settings and fields of nations, regions, and classes – not only aggravating environmental disasters. Especially, climate change has disproportionately taken a greater toll on the socially vulnerable. Women, the disabled, the poor, the elderly, the displaced, and refugees tend to be hit harder than other groups of people. For instance, this summer, Seoul, the capital of South Korea, was hit hard by unprecedented torrential rains that left many casualties and much property loss. In particular, many of the casualties were those who lived in semibasements of houses because of their economic difficulties. With the accelerating climate crisis, extreme heat and cold waves have caused even more serious damages to those living in poor residential areas as well. The point is that everyone suffers from the climate crisis, however, the damages the climate crisis inflicts are considerably discriminate.
The COVID-19 pandemic has allowed us to realize that climate crisis is a pressing and present disaster that has already infiltrated into our daily lives. Since scientists raised climate change as a serious issue in the mid-1980s, it has posed a grave threat to every aspect of the lives of humanity over the entire globe. Various research studies and our experiences have proven that new infectious diseases, such as COVID-19, and social and economic polarization are closely linked to climate change. It seems to be no coincidence that the period of the last half century, in which new contagious diseases have exponentially grown, falls on the period in which climate change has been aggravated. Many scientists have warned that we would face devastating consequences when the temperature rises by 1.5˚C from the level of the beginning of industrialization. Currently, however, we have come closer to that point. Therefore, now is time for us to raise awareness of and take actions against the climate crisis in order to brace for more serious risks in the future.
Cho Hyo-je, human rights sociologist and professor, said that the most seriously infringed upon right by the climate crisis is the right to health. The climate crisis brings about all kinds of health problems, including seasonal diseases, new viruses, vibrio illnesses, and lung disease. It also threatens the mental health of humanity. After experiencing wild fires, typhoons, and other natural disasters, victims reportedly tend to suffer from devastating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, and Climateinsomnia.crisis
▲ Two men overlook
With the adoption of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) by the EU in 2023 and the Carbon Neutrality Policy by the Republic of Korea, many regions and nations have rushed to come up with and implement policies and initiatives in response to climate change. In the course, the most important principle is “just transition.” Policies of transforming energy and industrial structures to cope with climate crisis need to take an approach that protect laborers and locals and eliminates inequality. First of all, taking a human rights approach is important to deal with the climate crisis. We need to view the climate crisis as a problem of human rights; therefore, the process of addressing it needs to take a human rights approach. In this crisis, the principles that we need to value include national and local governmental responsibility to protect citizens’ human rights, active climate actions by businesses to prevent the carbon capitalism, the application of climate-related conventions agreed upon by the international community, engagement of youth and stakeholders, and transparent information-sharing. the flooded area in Shekhpur, Muzaffarpur, Bihar, India. (Photograph by Deepak Kumar on Unsplash)
is deeply intertwined with social and economic problems, including the food crisis, poverty, contagious diseases, refugees, job insecurity, inequality, and poor living conditions. It is one of the greatest threats that undermines stable fundamentals of life and causes the deterioration human rights at every corner of our lives. This is the reason why we have to strictly uphold the obligation of nations and local governments to prevent human rights infringement and protect all citizens.
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Kwon Seung-moon, deputy director of the Energy and Climate Policy Institute, emphasized three directions that climate justice needs to move in from the perspective of human rights. Among them, the first is substantial justice. This is about respecting the rights of all members of our society as equally protected against climate crisis and the right for all to enjoy a healthy and clean environment. The second principle is distributive justice. This is about addressing the inequality in damages incurred by climate change. The third is procedural justice: engaging those hit hardest by climate change in the process of responding to the climate crisis.
THE WORLD HUMAN RIGHTS CITIES FORUM 세계인권도시포럼 Dates: October 10–13, 2022 Location: 30 Sangmu-nuri-ro, Seo-gu, Kimdaejung Convention Center 광주 서구 상무누리로 30 김대중컨벤션센터 Phone: 062-226-2734 Website: whrcf.org ▲ The devastating effects of Super Typhoon Odette in Lapu-Lap City, Cebu, Philippines. (Photo by
In the wake of the climate crisis, the most significant and pressing challenge that the world human rights cities, including Gwangju, have to work on is to thoroughly prepare policies to protect human rights, a universal value of humanity. The 12th World Human Rights Cities Forum will be held in Gwangju in October under the theme of “Climate Crisis and Human Rights.” The upcoming forum is expected to bring together human rights cities, human rights organizations, international organizations, city associations, and human rights NGOs to provide a venue for discussions on various human rights issues caused by the climate crisis and ways to collaborate among human rights activists from the perspective of “the human rights approach in responding to the climate crisis.” Especially when the current climate crisis becomes incorporated into the core of our daily lives, not as a mere future threat, we need to disseminate discussions and actions to protect human rights of all. Carl Dr. Kim Gi-gon also a senior researcher at the Jeonnam Research Institute member of the Planning Committee of the World Human Rights Cities Forum.
Kho on Unsplash. The Author
Gwangju
and a
participated in this year’s theme selection and the making concept notes, and he is
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gwangjunewsgic.com 2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju 15 FEATURE
On July 23, 2022, the military in Myanmar secretly executed four leaders of the country’s freedom movement. The martyrs’ families, like the men themselves, were not given advance notice. Final goodbyes were never said. Only after the dictatorship publicly announced the hangings two days later, on Monday, July 25, did the families and the world learn about these coldblooded murders. To add to the pain, the remains of the deceased have disappeared.
Rest in “Jimmy”PeaceKyaw Min Yu
The regime is being as brutal as possible in order to make clear that opposition to their rule will result in maximum pain and suffering. Among those killed were some of the most loved and popular leaders of the ongoing movement to overthrow the dictatorship: hip hop artist and elected parliamentary representative, Phyo Zeya Tha, leader of Generation Wave, which followed the 2007 Saffron Revolution; Hla Myo Aung; Aung Thura Zaw; and Kyaw Min Yu – better known to his friends, among whom I count myself, as “Jimmy.”
By George Katsiaficas
▲ Kyaw Min Yu (center) and his wife Ni Lar Thein (holding their child), both members of the 88 Generation student group, celebrate upon their arrival at Yangon International Airport following their release from detention, Myanmar, January 13, 2012. (Photo by Khin Maung Win / AP)
When he walked smiling down the street, strangers bowed with respect and admiration. His colleagues treated him with affectionate attentiveness. I asked him how it was possible that, unlike so many others whom I’ve known that had spent years in prison, he was able to emerge with such dignity and ebullience. His smile broadened as he replied, “You must understand. Yes, we were the ones sentenced to prison, but the warden had to ask me and my colleagues if he wanted anything done. The prisoners all respected and listened only to us. Inside the prisons, we had the power, and the warden was our servant who carried out tasks we assigned him.”
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“Actually, we felt pity for the warden,” he grinned.
Continuing in a more sober tone, he told me that poems written to him almost daily by his wife, who was also imprisoned, had sustained his emotional Jimmywell-being.chose his nickname because of his admiration for the human rights policy of U.S. President Jimmy Carter. He and I had more than one go round about this! Our many laughing banters back and forth saw ▲ Myanmar nationals living in South Korea marched in downtown Seoul on July 30, 2022, to condemn Myanmar’s recent execution of four democracy activists. (Photo by Ahn Young-joon / AP)
Jimmy was the pride of “The 8888 Generation.” At precisely 8:08 a.m. on August 8, 1988, a synchronized and coordinated nationwide uprising broke out and established a de facto government. Neighborhoods governed themselves, students directed traffic, and councils comprised mainly of monks and students served as judges and peaceful arbiters of disputes. A general strike shut down the economy. But the military struck back with an iron fist, thousands of people were killed, and even more arrested. For weeks, the military roamed the country, arbitrarily murdering activists, until the general strike collapsed on October 3. Having survived the massacres, Jimmy counted himself among the “lucky ones.” Along with thousands of other courageous souls, he was imprisoned for years. Released in 2003, after democracy had been temporarily restored, Jimmy was sentenced to another five years in prison in 2007 for leading protests against fuel price hikes. He was released in 2012 as part of a mass pardon, and we met the following year. Despite having spent nearly 20 years in prison, he exuded happiness and confidence.
At our final face-to-face meeting, he came to my hotel to give me a copy of his wife’s poems that had just been published as a book. Even though it was in Burmese and I could not read a word of it, his gift and kind inscription touched me greatly.
Since learning about his execution, I haven’t been able to talk much. I’ve lost loved ones and friends to diseases, including AIDS and drugs and violence. Unjust state-sponsored execution is probably the very hardest category of death to come to terms with. I alternate between burning anger and deep grief, but I know which direction Jimmy would tell me to take, activism to continue the struggle for which he paid the ultimate price.
Jimmy jokingly announced to his colleagues that I was the enemy of my own government, which they regarded as a friend. How ironic that the country Jimmy admired is doing so little for the democratic aspirations of the people he died for. The U.S., unlike the European Union, has yet to recognize the National Unity Government (NUG) made up of elected officials overthrown by the military junta that’s now refusing to give Jimmy’s family his ashes.
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The Author A long-time activist, George Katsiaficas lived in Gwangju for many years and was a visiting professor at Chonnom National University. His books have been translated into many languages. While in Gwangju, he completed a two-volume study, Asia’s Unknown Uprisings, that places the 1980 Gwangju Peoples Uprising at the center of a series of insurgencies in East and South Asia. A student of Herbert Marcuse, he developed the concept of the “eros effect” to name the sudden and synchronous eruption of grassroots movements. In 2016, he was named an honorary citizen of Gwangju and received the Kim Dae-jung Scholar’s Award (Hu-Kwang Award). With the prize money he took a delegation of descendants of 5.18 fighters to Greece. His web site is at http://www.eroseffect. com.
Jimmy was arrested for the final time on October 23, 2021, eight months after the military again overthrew a constitutionally elected government. In January of this year, he was sentenced to death along with more than one hundred others, but few believed the sentences would be carried out. Capital punishment had not been used in his country for more than three decades.
When I probed Jimmy’s loyalty to Aung San Sui Kyi, he stated simply that she was the leader chosen by the people, that he would follow her as long as her leadership was popularly accepted. Today, it is the NUG and its armed wing, the People’s Defense Forces, that represent the popular will of the people of Myanmar.
▲ Jimmy (third from left) and the author (fourth from left) in Yangon, June 20, 2013.
him chiding me for not accepting that the US could play a progressive role in the world, while I brought up the Carter administration’s bloody suppression of the 1980 Gwangju Uprising in South Korea, secret support for Pol Pot, and stepped up military aid to Indonesia after the genocide in East Timor.
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NUMUN-DONG’S ECLECTIC URBAN NETWORKS Numun-dong, located directly across the Gwangju Stream from Yangdong Market, is one of the city’s more variegated areas and a stellar example of how urban planners used to prioritize density differently through jumbles of mixed-use, low-rise structures. Even as it is now midway through the compensation process, the area is still teaming with grizzled locals and faded mom-and-pop shops that spill out onto the streets between rows of tightly parked cars. It even has a few garish love motels crowned with fake castle turrets and Russian onion domes, though The rooftop view from Motel Happy Day in Numun-dong.
2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju gwangjunewsgic.com 18 FEATURETRAVEL Redevelopment and Its Discontents in Numun-dong By Isaiah Winters
Lost in Gwangju
There’s a nasty case of redevelopment remorse playing out on the streets of Numun-dong. Dissatisfied with the compensation offered for their properties, locals are losing faith in the longterm redevelopment project many of them invited into their neighborhood years ago. What’s more, the project could further disrupt Gwangju’s ecology by diverting an important underground stream already marred by pollution problems. The accelerating momentum behind this project, the aging residents against it, and the malodorous tributary stewing beneath it all portend a slew of bad outcomes.
City planners began covering Gwangju’s many urban streams as far back as the 1970s, when the Yangdong Market area was expanded, resulting in the partial coverage of the Gwangju Stream seen there today. Things then really kicked off in the late 1980s when the Donggye Stream and others were covered, followed by new coverings of still other streams in the mid-1990s. While convenient for Gwangju’s booming development overhead, turning the city’s natural waterways into subterranean streams of concrete came with drawbacks. Heat is one such detriment. Urban streams help reduce the urban heat island effect by keeping cities greener and cooler with less heat-absorbing concrete blanketing surface streets. Flood control is another issue, as the new concrete waterways funnel floodwater faster and prevent natural groundwater permeation. Then there’s the pollution. Entombing urban streams converts them into a complex no-man’s-land that’s part stream, part street, and part sewer, making these spaces hard to classify and manage. Naturally, the result is poor waste management (and the ensuing wafts of effluvia that rise up from sewer grates to singe our nose hairs periodically).
Though a task bordering on the Sisyphean, there are those pursuing efforts to reconnect Gwangju’s underground streams with the surface. One such group is the Korea Federation of Environmental Movements in Gwangju (광주환경운동연합), from whose website I got much of the information for this segment of the article.[1] While the expensive and farfetched project to uncover Gwangju’s underground streams may seem locally isolated, the group has its eye on the broader context, with more extreme weather nationally and globally providing added urgency. As seen with the severe flooding across Gwangju during the 2020 rainy season and then in Seoul this year, all it takes is a few days of heavy rain for the overlooked importance of underground waterways to suddenly become national news.
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF DONGGYE STREAM
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From this valley in the foothills, the Donggye Stream flows down to Dongmyeong-dong and merges there with another tributary just under Sabotage, a favorite brunch spot for many Gwangju locals. This merger takes place just a few meters beneath the aptly named Donggye-cheon Street, the main thoroughfare connecting the heart of Dongmyeongdong to Daein Market where, it just so happens, the stream flows right under Dreamers, a favorite live music venue for many of us here. From there, the stream continues straight until it curves left at Gwangju Bank and Lotte Department Store, later spilling its contents into the Gwangju Stream beneath Numun-dong. It’s a fascinating course that links many of the city’s best-known haunts together and gives us a broader perspective of just how close we are to the city’s paved-over past. That’s why disrupting this course could come with so many problems, to which we’ll now turn our attention.
these are mostly abandoned now. It’s from the roof of one of these that I often get my best shots of the Ifarea.you dip into the narrow alleys punctuating the more modern grid of car- and store-lined streets, you’ll find far older residential networks whose cramped passages flow like waterways. These hidden housing interstices evoke an era of nonlinear residential planning that was less car-centric and more in tune with the local environment – or maybe just more chaotic. I suspect some of these winding back alleys were designed with the underground confluence of the Gwangju and Donggye Streams in mind, though it’s hard to say for sure. The latter stream, which is one of Gwangju’s many paved-over waterways, only came to my attention when doing research for this issue, but it’s in fact integral to the neighborhood’s past, present, and future, so that’s where I’d like to shift this article’s focus next.
SUBTERRANEAN STREAMS OF CONCRETE
If you’ve ever walked down to the Gwangju Stream under Yangdong Market, you’ll surely have noticed the large tunnel there with its often evil-smelling outflows. This is the pitch-black mouth of the Donggye-cheon (東溪川, “East-Brook” Stream), an underground tributary that merges there with the Gwangju Stream. It got its name simply enough due to its origins in the foothills of Mudeung Mountain east of Gwangju. You can visit one of its origin points where the old Jisan Amusement Park is, just up the valley from Hotel Mudeung Park and the city’s only ski lift. Up that valley, you’ll find many abandoned buildings associated with the former amusement park and a smallish reservoir – a significant collection point for the Donggye Stream.
It’s no wonder discontent is growing. For residents, it’s more logical to reject the redevelopment project altogether and maintain their property values at the current market price.
Incidentally, the tunnel in Numun-dong where the Donggye and Gwangju Streams converge is where the most intense images of flooding were produced back in 2020, and that’s why the neighborhood’s upcoming redevelopment project involving the redirection of the Donggye Stream’s course is so crucial. (More on that in the penultimate paragraph.)
2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju gwangjunewsgic.com 20 ▲ Two octagonal observatories in the reservoir at Jisan Amusement Park – one of the origin points of the Donggye Stream.
There’s an excellent article by journalists Byeon Jun-yeong and Han Cheong-heun in the Chondae Shinmun in which they interview several residents of Numun-dong about what the compensation process has been like. Much of what I write in this section comes from that fine piece, which I can’t recommend highly enough.[2] In short, if poorly compensated, many residents will have no place to go. The average age of Numun-dong residents is just over 50 – nearly ten years older than the average Gwangju resident. With so many past their working prime, much of their retirement nest eggs are tied up in the real estate they own. Many simply want the redevelopment project to stop, as it’s now fast killing local businesses, too, making the neighborhood more of an eyesore every day. When reached out to for its side of the story, the union in charge of the redevelopment project said, “Please do not respond to the coverage.” The Urban Redevelopment
REDEVELOPERS’ REMORSE
The redevelopment of Numun-dong is a project reaching back to 2006, but after a long series of delays, only now are things really taking shape above ground. The proposed New Stay Apartment (뉴스테이 아파트) project will build close to three thousand housing units that will at first be rented out below market value and then, following the end of the mandatory rental period, be sold or rented out again at the real market price. The issue is that Numun-dong is so centrally located that for the redevelopment company to make a profit on the sky-high cost of land redevelopment there, spending cuts likely have to be made somewhere. That’s why the compensation process is becoming an issue, as local residents feel they’re getting the short end of the stick. In response, a group of anti-redevelopment residents know as the Gwangju Numun Hope Production Solidarity (광주누문희망제작연대) has formed to protect locals’ interests. According to Kim Gwang-ho, a higher-up in said group, “residents of Numun-dong received an appraisal [on their properties] of only one-third the market price, and this is an outrageous amount.”
Division of Gwangju Metropolitan City was also contacted for its views, but it commented that the redevelopment project was originally made “at the suggestion of the residents, so it is difficult for the government to intervene.” What’s more, part of the redevelopment plan involves artificially changing the Donggye Stream by blocking part of its natural path. According to Yang Hae-geun, director of the Korea Environmental Disaster Research Institute, “If the Donggye Stream is blocked with a structure to divert the water, the flow of groundwater will be blocked, which may cause water to flow into old buildings or weaken the ground. If the waterway … is changed, a groundwater safety evaluation must be carried out.”
Donggye Stream. It’s a warning to those seeking to have their own neighborhoods redeveloped in the future: caveat emptor. by Isaiah Winters
The Born and raised Winters
is a pixel-stained wretch who loves writing about Gwangju and Honam, warts and all. He particularly likes doing unsolicited appraisals of abandoned Korean properties, a remnant of his time working as an appraiser back home. You can find much of his photography on Instagram @d.p.r.kwangju. [3][2][1]
Photographs
Unfortunately, according to one excellent article on the matter from last year, the Buk-gu Urban Committee, after completing the advisory process for the apartment construction plan, “did not request any supplementary measures to prepare for the restoration of the Donggye Stream.”[3] I wasn’t able to find much else on the topic save that one disconsolate quote.
Ultimately, the redevelopment project in Numundong looks as grim for the poorly compensated residents as it does for the already badly polluted
. Sources Na, D. (2020, July 23). [기고] 광주 복개하천, 이제는 뜯어낼 때. Korea Federation of Environmental Movements in Gwangju. http://gj.ekfem.or.kr/archives/20934 Byeon, J., & Han, C. (2022, March 2). [르포] 누문동 재개발, 단순 개발 아닌 주민 생활권 문제 Chondae Shinmun. Jeong,View.html?idxno=15391http://press.cnumedia.com/news/articleD.(2021,April12). 대규모 아파트 단지 짓자고 하천 물길 돌린 광주시 The Hankyoreh. https://www. hani.co.kr/arti/area/honam/990544.html ▲ The mouth of the mighty Donggye Stream and its dirty dishwater hue. The smell is glorious.
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Author
in Chino, California, Isaiah
Around Korea ▲ View from the incredible lookout point at the top of the mountain.
While the big cities in Korea get all sorts of attention with their newfangled technology and shiny buildings, some of the most overlooked areas in the country are the southern coastal regions. There is a plethora of destinations along the coast, all within a two-hour drive from Gwangju, that offer unparalleled natural beauty, wide-open spaces, fantastic beaches, and plenty of good times.
Namhae is perhaps best known, especially among the foreigner/expat/waygookin community as home of the German village, which in former times used to host the alcohol- (and regret-) fueled Oktoberfest every year. But it turns out, there are plenty of other wonderful (and less regret-filled) adventures to be had on the butterfly-shaped peninsula. The other weekend, I had the pleasure of spending a night in Sacheon, which solidified Namhae’s status as my favorite coastal destination in the country.
2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju gwangjunewsgic.com 22 FEATURETRAVEL
Namhae and the Sacheon Cable Car
By William Urbanski
Shinan, Jindo, and Goheung (but not Yeosu, an area that has become much too congested for my liking) all have many hidden treasures, but if I had to pick one that offers the most bang for your buck (or “wow for your won”), it would have to be Namhae.
After buying tickets for a very reasonable 15,000 won a piece, my wife and I made it through the line quite quickly and stepped inside the gondola that
Sacheon is located in the northeastern part of Namhae and features as its main attraction a cable car that spans the water from the mainland to the island of Choyang-do. Now I’ve been on a surprisingly high number of cable cars in Korea, and while I don’t mind them, they’re not exactly my cup of tea if you know what I mean. So, I didn’t have particularly high expectations for this one, but let me tell you, this one, as they say back in Ontario, was worth the drive to Acton.
would carry us across the bay. Moments later, we were all very surprised by the view as our cable car whisked us over the water. After disembarking, we were happy to discover the island had a couple of cool features. There was an aquarium, a small zoo, and a really cool pirate ship thingamabob with a plexiglass floor thingamajig that you could stand on and take copious selfies from.
Maybe it’s just because I’m a bit of a nerd, but there was an old-style fishing weir a stone’s throw from the pirate ship, which I thought was quite interesting. To the untrained eye, a fishing weir looks like nothing more than a row of wooden poles sticking out of the water, but an explanatory plaque on the ship revealed its true purpose. As a historical side note, similar fishing weirs have been found all over the world, and even in my hometown in Ontario, there is one that has been dated to near 5,000 BC. In any case, it’s cool to see this primitive technology still in use.
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After hanging around on the island for a while, we got back in the cable car for what I thought would be the end of our trip, but instead of having to get off at the main station, the cable car continued up the side of the mountain for what would turn out to be the highlight of my day for a couple of reasons.
The first thing that was hard to miss was that the cable car course had actually been constructed over a Buddhist monastery or temple or something like that. Needless to say, the people at the temple building were less than pleased that the cable car got built and put a huge banner on their roof cursing all the people who rode the cable car. While the direct translation of the banner is something along the lines of “All those who ride on the cable car will have an unfortunate life,” my wife explained to me that their exact choice of words was particularly nasty. In all honestly, I would have to say that whoever put up the banner won this round of “Temple vs Cable Car” because what better way to stick it to the man ▲ View of Sacheon from the cable car.
대방동
Open:
2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju gwangjunewsgic.com 24 than install a massive banner cursing the existence of everyone who sees it. At the top of the mountain, there was a completely stunning lookout area that had me absolutely abusing the panorama picture function on my phone. On another historical note, there was a replica of a signal fire station at the top of the mountain, and just standing up there, it was easy to visualize what it must have been like to look over the water hundreds of years ago and keep an eye out for enemy ships. After finally arriving at the base station again, I generally felt impressed by the experience, which took about two hours from start to finish. As an added bonus, the area near the main cable car station has a wonderful boardwalk that lights up and is a great place to soak up the night atmosphere. All in all, I would say that the cable car was surprisingly good and well worth the stop if you’re looking for a way to get away from the glitz and glamor of big city living for a night. Despite what a bunch of furious temple advocates have to say, ▲ Sacheon at night. the Sacheon cable car is the bee’s knees and the cat’s meow all rolled into one. Five stars out of five.
Address:
Phone: 055-831-7300 10:00–21:00. Last ride: ~20:00 The Author William Urbanski is the managing editor of the Gwangju News. He is married and can eat spicy food. Instagram: @will_il_gatto Replica of an ancient signal fire. This is how people communicated before smart phones.
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경남 사천시 사천대로 18구
SACHEON CABLE CAR INFORMATION 18-gu Sacheon-daero, (Daebang-dong) Sacheon, Gyeongsangnam-do ( 492-2)
gwangjunewsgic.com 2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju 25 LEARNING&TEACHING Everyday Korean By Harsh Kumar Mishra The Conversation 정민: 멍지에, 내일 시내에서 불우 이웃 돕기 운동을 하는데 같이 갈래? Jeongmin: Meongjie, do you want to come with me to a “help needy neighbors” campaign downtown tomorrow? 멍지에: 좋아요, 언니. 제가 어렸을 때 이런 활동에 자주 갔어요. Meongjie: Sure, Eonni. I frequently went to such campaigns during my childhood. 정민: 아 그래? Jeongmin: Is that so? 멍지에: 네. 용돈을 조금씩 모아서 성금도 냈어요. Meongjie: Yeah. I even made a donation from my pocket money savings. 정민: 우와! 우리 멍지에가 참 착하고 손이 큰 사람이구나. Jeongmin: Wow! You are really kind and generous. 멍지에: 아니에요. 저는 손이 크지 않아요. Meongjie: Not at all. I am not generous. 정민: 겸손할 줄도 아네. 나도 다른 사람을 도울 때 손이 컸으면 좋겠다. Jeongmin: You even know how to be modest. I wish I could also become generous when helping others. The Author Harsh Kumar Mishra is a linguist and Korean language educator. He volunteers with TOPIKGUIDE.com and Learnkorean. in. He has also co-authored the book Korean Language for Indian Learners. Grammar Points V/Adj ~ 을/ㄹ 때 This connector is used with Verb and Adjective stems and expresses the moment that an action or state takes/took place (i.e., “When…”). Examples - 저는 공부할 때 과자를 많이 먹어요. I eat a lot of snacks when studying. - 기분이 좋을 때 뭐하는 것을 좋아해요? What do you like to do when you’re happy? 손이 크다 This frequently used Korean idiom, whose literal meaning is “to have big hands,” simply means “generous.” Examples - 우리 엄마가 손이 커서 음식을 너무 많이 준비하세요. My mom is very open handed, so she prepares too much food. - 우리 대표님이 손이 크니까 이번에도 좋은 보너스 기대돼요. Our CEO is generous, so I’m looking forward to a good bonus this time, too. Vocabulary Episode 57 손이 큰 사람이구나 You are generous! Learning Korean 시내: downtown 이웃: neighbor 돕다: to help 운동: activity; campaign 불우: underprivileged 용돈: pocket money 모으다: to save 조금씩: little by little 성금: donation 착하다: to be kind 겸손하다: to be modest 다른 사람: other people 한국어
Teaching English Back in the Day A Korean Retrospect
Many expat teachers in Korea today got their start in English teaching at one of the many private English institutes that populate the streets of every population center in the nation. I did not begin my days in Korea working at a language institute (aka hagwon) – nor did any expat in Korea at the time. It was against the law. “English fever” and “English hell” are not such recent phenomena. During the Park Chung Hee administration, only a very few hagwon were granted business licenses, and those that were so lucky were limited to teaching content directly related to standardized exams such as the college entrance examination, and hiring nonKoreans to teach English was also against the law. This tight restriction on English hagwon, and hagwon in general, served to keep the fever under control, to keep parents from spending tens of thousands of won monthly on after-school classes, and to center the importance of English education on the public school system.
In the early 1970s, free and mandatory education was provided only through the sixth grade of elementary school across the nation. The reason being that the nation could not generate enough revenue to both develop industry and strengthen education – and industry won out. There were middle schools and some high schools located in the more populated centers of the country that were technically privately owned but requiring state accreditation, and this meant that they were tightly controlled by government regulations. Being private, these schools were allowed to charge tuition fees, but with the economy in the state that it was in at the time, families who could afford to send their children on to middle school, much less to high school, were limited. Some families had to decide with their limited incomes which of their children to send to middle school, and with Korea being a much more patriarchal society than it is today, sons, and the first son in particular, won out. In the countryside, the opportunities were even fewer: Tuition was often out of the question, and there wasn’t even a middle school in the area to go to. Moving to the city was also not a viable option for most. As an aside, it
With the sweltering heat and humidity of summer and the ubiquitous downpours of the rainy season, one is placed in a perfect position to ponder the past, to reminisce about bygone days. I was recently is such a state of mind, allowing my thoughts to travel back into a mind warp to my early days in Korea and focus on how English teaching in this part of the peninsula has changed in the intervening half century.
Language Teaching
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▲ A typical class of high school boys. (c. 1970)
▲ Fmr. U.S. Ambassador to Korea Kathleen Stephens in her Peace Corps days with her middle school students. (Courtesy of Kathleen Stephens)
KoreanAtinthesocoursehowever,me.notinstructionmediumwasanoptionforFortunately,thewassetupthatmostoftimewasspenttheworkshop.thetime,the gyeongungi (경운기, rotary tiller) was making its debut on the market, and its operation and repair was a big part of the curriculum, along with metalworking, welding, and lathework. It was only in the late 1990s that English education was introduced into the Korean elementary school curriculum. This meant that for the many youths with only an elementary school education in the 1970s, they had received no exposure to English at school, and most likely would not afterwards. Then, English study only began in the first year of middle school and continued throughout the three years of high school. New middle school students entered their schools as true beginners. You may wonder why these students’ parents didn’t seek outside sources of English learning in advance to prepare their children for in-school English study as is so common today. Two main reasons: money and availability. Family size was larger back then (my wife was one of eight children). But more importantly, English learning options simply were not available.
wasn’t uncommon for a university professor to have a wife with no more than an elementary school Witheducation.somany minimally educated children across the country, and with the government promoting industrialization and agriculture mechanization, the need for vocational education became apparent. Support was obtained from the ILO (UN International Labor Organization) for the establishment of six rural vocational centers nationwide, and a commitment of one instructor per center was provided by the U.S. Peace Corps. That is how I made my entrance into Korea – as a member of the first vocational education Peace Corps group to Korea. At Gwangju’s “Chollanamdo” Agricultural-Industrial Vocational Training Center, where I was assigned, the six-month agricultural mechanics courses accommodated about 25–30 students from rural Jeollanam-do, about half of whom had only an elementary school education and the remainder with some degree of middle school schooling. As such, English
As TVprogramsEnglishTherepreparation.examtowerethatandveryhagwonEnglishearlier,mentionedwerefew,theonesdidexistgearedentrancewerenostudyon–noEBS
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station – and there was no English language programming – such as Friends. In fact, there was very little TV: There were only two television stations (KBS and MBC), and broadcasting time was limited to 5 p.m. to midnight daily. Even this evening TV programming was watched by very few, as the average family could not afford a luxury item such as a portable TV with a 12-inch screen. What about radios? No English programming there either. Voice of America and BBC did broadcast internationally in English on short-wave radio, but the catch was that short-wave radios were banned in Korea: They could be used as a means of communication by spies for the North. What about English study books in the bookstores? None, or nearly none. What about tape recorders and English study tapes? Like televisions, a tape recorder was a highly expensive piece of equipment, and English study tapes were not yet a thing. But what about English-speaking expats to do private tutoring? They were not a thing yet either back in the early 1970s. What Korea did have, though, in addition to their own public school English teachers, were U.S. Peace Corps-sponsored English teachers. From the late 1960s to 1980, young Americans were posted as English instructors at many of Korea’s middle schools, as well as in university positions. High schools, because of their almost singular focus on university entrance exam prep, were not considered The Korean rotary tiller, gyeongungi, made its debut in the early 1970s. 2.0 KR)
(Namuwiki, CC BY-NC-SA
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Before being placed in middle schools, Peace Corps instructors went through training in English language teaching and Korean language learning. Before they first entered their Korean classrooms, they brought with them many years of experience as students in interactive classrooms – something still quite foreign to Korean students and teachers at the time. They also brought with them modern language teaching techniques, such as pattern practice, learning English through song and games, and the most basic of all: speaking English in class instead of merely listening to explanations about it! The Peace Corps English teaching program had a major impact on modernizing English teaching in Korea. Korea’s EPIK teacher recruitment program that materialized in the mid-1990s was patterned in many ways on the Peace Corps English teaching program, but much before that, the Peace Corps program was making an impact. A major impact that had its origins in this “City of Light” started at Chungjang Middle School in Sansu-dong. There, a Peace Corps teacher and her co-teacher came up with the idea of a short, tape-recorded listening test of five questions. It so happened that the middle school was designated as a research school, and the co-teacher was a “research teacher” who reported the results of the school-wide listening test to the provincial office of education. The provincial office liked what they heard and decided on taking the simultaneously conducted listening test province-wide. I was part of the team forming the questions and recording them for the first few series of these province-wide listening tests. After the technical kinks were worked out, the English listening test format was established nationwide and developed in what it is today as part of the university entrance examination.
At the time, there were only five university-related buildings on a sprawling Chosun University campus that now houses 60-some structures, and most of those first five were much smaller than they are today. The Foreign Languages Department, which I was a part of, was in the Main Building, and all the 15 or so professors in the department were in one large room with desks in a circle facing each other, with the department head sitting at a large desk at the head of the circle, much like at primary and secondary schools. Buildings did not have central heating or air conditioning at the time. In the coldest of winter, coal briquette space heaters were installed in offices, and in the hottest of summer, one electric fan per large office. Regardless, the temperature often
to be an optimal placement for Peace Corps instructors, as English instruction there focused on the memorization of grammar rules and vocabulary items. Korean English teachers were better schooled in such pre-contemporary teaching techniques.
▲ The Chosun University Main Building on the hill. (c. 1965–1970)
As Chosun University was pretty much a typical example of a university in Korea in 1976, I will describe university facilities and materials of the mid-1970s by describing my teaching situation during my first years at the university.
By the time Chungjang Middle School was experimenting with listening tests, I had completed four years with Peace Corps and had taken up a teaching position at Chosun University, not too far down the street from Chungjang Middle School.
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▲ Peace Corps instructor and co-teacher introduce song into the English classroom. (c. 1970)
remember that the classrooms did have an electrical outlet, though there were no tape recorders or electric fans available to plug into them. However, the university was installing a language laboratory where all freshman students would take their mandatory Laboratory English courses in the new-toKorea audiolingual format. When I was taken to the downtown bookstore to choose a coursebook, there was a total of two English language coursebooks to choose from. Both were based on listen-and-repeat dialogues that were popular teaching methodology at the time. Little else was available as teaching or learning materials – other than the requisite sixcentimeter-thick English–Korean dictionary that
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The Author David Shaffer has been involved in TEFL and teacher training in Gwangju for many years. As vice-president of the GwangjuJeonnam Chapter of KOTESOL, he invites you to participate in the chapter’s teacher development workshops and events (in person and online) and in KOTESOL activities in general. He is a past president of KOTESOL and is currently the editor-in-chief of the Gwangju News.
My language skills classes of 15–20 students were smaller than average university class size, and much smaller than the 70–80 students that these same students had been used to in high school. Because of this small class size, my classes were assigned to the smallest classrooms, which just happened to be located directly under the gabled roofs that the main building is noted for. I intentionally said “roof” rather than “ceiling,” because the corrugated roofing of these gabled roofs were the classroom ceilings, from which a single incandescent light bulb hung. In the back of the room, there was an open-air gap between the eave of the roof and the wall under it for ventilation and giving the room its natural light. So, these rooms were cold in wintry weather, hot in summery weather, windy in stormy weather, and noisy and dingy in rainy weather. We all know that none of these conditions are conducive to effective Ilearning.seemto
GWANGJU-JEONNAM KOTESOL UPCOMING EVENTS Check the Chapter’s webpages and Facebook group periodically for updates on chapter events, online and in person, and other KOTESOL activities. For full event details: • Website: http://koreatesol.org/gwangju • Facebook: Gwangju-Jeonnam KOTESOL ▲ An English-teaching robot in a Daegu elementary school. (© Daegu Metropolitan Office of Education/AFP)
Classrooms did not have the luxury of electric fans or coal briquette heaters. Desks and chairs were made of course wood, with the green paint on the plywood desktops making them smoother and less splinter prone. On the front wall was a chalkboard, also made of plywood but with coatings of paint to make it much smoother than the desktops and to make the chalk much more easily erasable. Also in the front of the room was a wood-and-plywood lectern with little finish and often wobbly on its floor of gray concrete.
each of my students carried as a badge of studenthood. With only a fourth of youths going on to university, a tertiary education was considered a privilege rather than the societal requirement it has become today.
remained too extreme to be able to do any real work at these times, but office hours, even though it was student vacation time, remained 9 to 6 on weekdays and until 1 p.m. on Saturdays.
Though English education in Korea is still overly reliant on grammar-rule learning, vocabulary-word memorization, and standardized-test preparation, the nation has, nevertheless, made great strides in English language learning and teaching. From dusty blackboards to interactive whiteboards. From the lone classroom teacher to the chatbot and English-teaching robot. From the occasional tape recorder to the wired classroom with computer console and everything the internet has to offer. It’s difficult to fully realize how substantive the changes in English education have been in the last half century in Korea.
My Memories Are a Movie: A Different Kind of Chungjang Festival
The Chungjang World Festival of Recollection (추억의 충장축제, or Chunjang Festival) has experienced transformation over the years. The Chungjang Festival is a representative city street festival in Korea and has been held since 2004 with the aim of overcoming the hollowing out of the old downtown Gwangju (Dong-gu) area due to the development of new neighborhoods in the early 2000s. It will be opening Chungjang and Geumnam Streets to Gwangju citizens rather than to traffic. Reflecting back on the period from the 1970s to the 1990s, this year marks the 19th year of Chungjang Festival, which is now a global event. The street area from Chungjang-ro 4-ga to 5-ga will also be decorated with nostalgic movie art, and empty stores
By the Gwangju Dong-gu District Office
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SHOWCASING WORLD FOOD AND CULTURE
gwangjunewsgic.com 2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju 31 will be used as cosplay movie spots for dressing up as characters from such movies as Snow White, Spiderman, and Ironman, and the Goblin Alley area (광주광역시 동구 충장로 5가 127-1) will have movie character sculptures installed to provide a variety of attractions and experiences for the citizens.
The Dong-gu Office is preparing various types of street food, focusing on how the food is provided. Colorful street food stalls and booths will hopefully provide an opportunity to introduce Korean street food and representative foods of Gwangju to the world, and to promote participation of foreign embassies in Korea to introduce their countries’ foods to Gwangju citizens.
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Located in the east of Gwangju, Dong-gu District hopes that the Chungjang Festival will continue to grow as a festival with active participation from citizens, local artists, and businesses. It is hoped that the festival will revitalize the local economy and enhance the image of Gwangju as a fun city focusing on Korean culture. It will be a festival to “remember”!
THE FIRST BUSKERS WORLD CUP
Another important part of the Chungjang Festival this year is the Buskers World Cup in Gwangju. Domestic and foreign artists will be participating in this very first of its kind event. The final round of the busking competition will be held on October 17 at the May 18 Democratic Plaza, while preliminary performances will be held at various venues throughout the downtown area. With world interest in the “Buskers World Cup in Gwangju” program, 539 teams consisting of 1,603 performers from 46 countries have applied. From among thse teams, 120 teams from 25 countries have advanced to the final. Among the overseas participants who made it to the finals, Aancod Abe Zaccarelli from London, England, is participating in this competition as a team with his Korean friend Kim Wang-guk. In 2014, a video of one of his busking performances, singing “One Candle” at Seoul National University Station in Seoul, recorded 5.99 million views on YouTube. Another finalist, Australia’s Malachy, sings the song “Highway,” which was written and composed while on a motorcycle trip from New Mexico, USA, to Vancouver, Canada, planting a message of human unity and camaraderie.
Various performances, experiences, and exhibitions are being prepared to reflect this year’s theme “My Memories Are a Movie (A Movie of Memories).”
The theme for this year’s parade is “Unforgettable Movie Scenes,” is expected to be the most anticipated content and most important part of Chungjang Festival. Foreign as well as domestic artists will raise the artistic level of the parade. Plays and performances will also be held so that every generation can reminiscence about their favorite movies.
The parade will include global buskers (teams participating in the Buskers World Cup finals), international cooperation cities, multicultural families and international students, arts paraders (domestic and foreign artists, aerial acrobatics, drones, etc.), citizen paraders, festival paraders of teams from other region governments, campaign paraders, and invited paraders (the Gossaum fight, the Ganggang-sullae dance, the Andong mask dance,Photographsetc.). by the Gwangju Dong-gu District Office.
MOVIE
32 CHUNGJANG WORLD FESTIVAL OF RECOLLECTION 2022 추억의충장월드페스티벌 Dates: October 13–17, 2022 Venue: May 18 Democratic Plaza, Asia Culture Center, Chungjang Street area, Art Street, and some online activities. Theme: My Memories Are a Movie Program: Official events, parades, exhibitions, performance, culture experiences, contents, etc. Phone: 062-232-1008 Website: https://www.donggu.kr/index.es?sid=c8 Facebook: @chungjangfestival17 Instagram: @chunjang_festival
The Chungjang Parade will create a theme street of unique memories for all generations. It will add
The skills of domestic participants are also competitive. The seven-member Brazilian musical instrument team Primavera arranged the song Anyone with witty lyrics and a samba rhythm to make any listener smile, and they arranged the song Mugunghwa Flower with a guitar and loop station. And Guitaroro has surprised the judges with her excellent song interpretation and performance skills.
A OF MEMORIES
THE CHUNGJANG PARADE
colorful and exciting elements through media art diffraction grating and 3D space utilization such as the ground, exterior walls of buildings, and rooftops. It hopes to attract 5,000 participants from home and abroad. The parade will travel from Suchang Elementary School, past Geumnam Park, to the May 18 Democratic Plaza.
Composed of various stories with a single, realistic theme, the parade will intergate media art, movies, and stunts.
Parade preparation will include citizens representing different wards in the Dong-gu area, who will lead from the planning stage to the execution stage through the Parade Creation School.
A live music performance by an invited orchestra from Eurasia will hopefully reflect the festival theme, providing the visitors with a unique cultural and artistic experience through movie images and classical performances. It will be performed by an orchestra of 70 people, two ballerinas, four vocalists, and the Dong-gu Choir. It will feature originat sound tracks from 13 films, including Beauty and the Beast, Mamma Mia, Top Gun, La Boum, and Nella Fantasia
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Significantly, the 2022 ACE FAIR is the first on-site fair since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, so many company exhibitors expect to meet buyers and build their business networks. Also, the Content Developer’s Conference (CDC) will be held as part of the ACE Fair. This year’s ACE Fair theme is “Digital Transformation and Expansion of Content Value,” while the theme of this year’s second annual CDC is “Content Evolution: Now and the Future.” This follows last year’s first CDC, which was themed ACE Fair Opens in Gwangju
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Have you heard of the ACE Fair? It is one of the well-known content and culture fairs in Korea. It started in 2006; ACE stands for “Asia Content and Entertainment.” This exhibition supports the sectors of broadcasting and OTT streaming, animation and characters, and digital content (VR/AR/XR/AI), as well as all types of Thislicensing.year’s 17th Annual Asia Content and Entertainment Fair opens in Gwangju on September 22, riding on Korea’s most vibrant content environment ever, with unprecedented international attention and fast-rising production budgets that allow local creators to compete on global platforms.
By the ACE Fair Secretariat
Kimdaejung
More than 120 overseas buyers are participating in the four-day fair, including 50 who will be participating in person, courtesy of the Korean government’s decision to lower health restrictions on foreign visitors. During the event, one of the highlights is a networking party involving Korean government officials along with key Korean and international enterprises across a range of fields, including entertainment, education, animation, and games.
광주 서구 상무누리로 30 김대중컨벤션센터 Phone: 062-611-2246 Website: acefair.or.kr
Photographs by the ACE Fair Secretariat.
2022 광주에이스페어 Dates:
Sangmu-nuri-ro,
Location
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“Metaverse: Beyond Content.” The aim this year is to present the Gwangju ACE Fair as a wholesome event, equipped with various seminars, conferences, and other events for all the international TV, broadcasting, and animation players.” New to the fair this year are the Web Animation Festival (WAF 2022) and the Gwangju Story Festival. The ACE Fair is not only a fair for business but also an event that can be enjoyed by everyone. Digital transformation and the expansion of content value take the main stage at this year’s ACE Fair and CDC, highlighting the important, top priorities that drive sweeping change in all industries. The ACE Fair, which will run from September 22 to 25, is the largest-scale physical event for the content industry in Korea this year. The second CDC will be held for two days – September 22 and 23 – alongside the fair.
GWANGJU ACE FAIR September 22 25, 2022 : 30 Seo-gu, Convention Center
Empower, Seek, Adapt “Rise Together” at Gwangju’s Refugee Women Bazaar ▲ Fatima Al-Khadire, the founder (front left, on one knee), the booth operators, and musicians along with all participating volunteers after wrapping up the event.
By Yousra Feriel Drioua
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OOn a scorching Sunday afternoon in the historical city of Gwangju, a new chapter was written. This might come as a stretch if you have experienced living in South Korea, but hear me out. Last June 26, Gwangju attested to a moment that could potentially be the birthplace of or stepping stone to a multiracial society in Korea – within sensible reason, of course. That is, given adequate time, conditions, and structure. On the historical grounds of the May 18th square near the Asia Culture Center, the first Refugee Women Bazaar in Gwangju took place. Let me be clear and state that there is a distinct difference between “refugees” and “immigrants.” These women sought refuge in South Korea due to multiple factors ranging from war and political oppression to state-enforced imprisonment. What must be acknowledged is that they ran away from threats. No matter the variables of their individual
Next, before we jump further, let us introduce the brain and heart behind such a front: Fatima AlKhadire. A passionate Jordanian human rights lawyer specializing in Refugee Law, she is a recent Chonnam National University graduate with an MA in NGO Studies. Prior to that, she won the Global NGO Master’s Program Scholarship (GNMP) offered by the May 18th Institute, which guided her to South Korea in 2019. Her master’s degree thesis focused on Arab women refugees in South Korea, a topic that has also yet to be explored often in this country, which made her research simultaneously more difficult but authentic. As an Arab woman myself, I was intrigued to hear the stories she had to share after the meetings and surveys she did. Nonetheless, Miss Al-Khadire is currently most known as the proud founder of the Rise Together project. Rise Together is the first NGO of its kind in South Korea, as it is founded by a foreigner for the The event’s MCs alongside the musical band; passionate volunteers and close friends of Fatima Al-Khadire.
2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju gwangjunewsgic.com 36 circumstances, they shared one thought in heart: to seeking a better life. Now, before we unconsciously take pity on these ladies, this unprecedented event was not aiming for pity in any way, shape, or form. It was, as a matter of fact, a means to do the contrary. That is, to celebrate these women and recognize the strength and bravery it took to make the decision of leaving everything they have ever known behind and dive into whatever life threw their way. It aimed to honor their persistence in adapting to a foreign land, language, culture, and society. Because, truthfully, what other choice did they have left except to survive? But mostly, this advent was brought to life so as to openly celebrate these women’s passions, which ranged from cooking, no matter how too befitting with socially enforced gender roles that sounds, jewelry making, and drawing to launching small businesses.
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P.S.: Do not forget to hit the follow button on Rise Together’s Instagram page for all future updates and news! @risetogether_project22
In addition to the general information booth, participants could get stickers to collect stamps from each booth they visited to either get free popcorn or a henna tattoo from the last booth. As stated by Fatima and the volunteers, they felt it was much more of a success than anticipated. The people who visited to get stamps were of different age groups and sexes. They also ranged from mostly Koreans to a few foreigners, which was delightful to see. Last but not least, this is not the last we are going to see of Rise Together. The idea is fresh, serves a purpose, and is full of determination. Alongside the warmhearted visionary, Fatima, the passionate volunteers and everyone who had a hand in making the Refugee Women Bazaar a possibility surely still have more to bring to the table, especially in South Korea. I will end this piece with a line I am trying to adapt into my life at the moment. That line is: If you seek change, you must be a part of it.
The Author Yousra Feriel Drioua is a KGSP 21 scholar from Algeria, and previously a CNU Korean language trainee and currently a mass communication and journalism graduate school student at Kangwon National University. She seeks to learn and gain various experiences all around. She loves coffee, driving, deep conversations with friends and writing. Instagram @ myyilgi most part. It aims not only to be a voice for refugees but to be the bridge between said refugees and Korean society in hopes of ending dated stigmas and prejudice while creating positive change passionately and patiently. Getting back on topic, there were several stars of the show that day besides the refugee women. While preparing for this event, Gwangju’s historic soul was displayed through the help of the May 18th Foundation and the Immigration Support Center, not to mention the volunteers, who themselves varied in ethnicity, origin, age group, and career field. The volunteers, as much as the refugee women in question, all share a passion for a better tomorrow while taking part in the movement in the present Theday. agenda was kept clean and simple so as not to startle the passersby but get them intrigued instead. There was a classic opening in both English and Korean as per custom, with musical performances and multiple booths. The main focus was the booths, which were dedicated to (1) Russia with handmade jewelry, (2) Iraq with art, (3) Afghanistan with food and culture, (4) Ethiopia and India with food, and (5) Egypt with a small handmade jewelry business.
I know Chosun University has a good dental clinic, but I have no idea why I have never been there. I heard stories that big university dental hospitals like to invite student doctors to “help” the dentist, but I hate having strangers around me and letting them see my teeth being treated. But on a fateful day in July, I had to bring my son there because the pediatric dentist that he and I just recently visited to take care of his baby teeth asked me to pay 600,000 won for crowns. As soon as they quoted me the price, I walked out and urgently looked for a second opinion, but it was already 3 p.m., and most clinics require reservations. Chosun University Dental Office came to mind, so I quickly rang them up, and they said they also welcomed walk-in visits. I rushed there and told them our situation, and a female doctor kindly asked me a few things before asking my son to sit in the chair. Now, my son hates the dentist because he hates having strange objects in his mouth. He had to be restrained in the previous dental office, and I was so worried it would cause him trauma. But to my surprise, there he sat by himself and let the doctor examine him before asking us to go for an X-ray (he did amazing there, too, because at the previous place, he tried to bite the nurses). They found out that he had four cavities (not six like the other place said), Dental
Hospital
Fear No More! Our Trip to Chosun University (Pediatric)
Ithink it is no secret that almost everyone dislikes the dentist. Well, maybe not the dentists themselves, but the alcohol-smell-filled room, the sound of the drill, and weird-looking dental tools are enough to cause nightmares as fears come to life at the dental office for both adults and kids. I myself went to the dentist so many times during my childhood for regular scaling and surgeries to remove four wisdom teeth that it completely erased my fear of the dentist, and now I will just step into any clinic with almost no feeling at all. I thank my parents for being so fearless in taking me there regularly despite the many hours we had to sit in the waiting room. It was in the 1990s, so there was no smart phones or tablets to keep me busy. But now as a mother myself, I have had to step into the dental office more than expected. Children’s teeth are more fragile and prone to cavities. My son does not eat candies but still has trouble brushing his own teeth. I would trade sitting in that reclining chair myself for my son if I had to, rather than hear him scream bloody murder, causing all the weird looks from other parents (although I could not care less). I have been to several dental clinics in Gwangju all over the “gus” for years – for myself and my son – and I cannot seem to find one perfect place that can fully understand us, although I have told the dental staff before visiting that I am a mother to a special needs child, as my son is autistic, which presents more challenges because he is non-verbal and cannot say which parts of his teeth are hurting.
Karina Prananto Expat Living ▲
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By The spacious lobby.
The Author Karina Prananto is from Jakarta, Indonesia, and has been involved with the Gwangju News since 2007. She is a special-needs mother and loves Harry Potter, dinosaurs, watching true crime documentaries, and traveling with her family. The examination room.
▲ Left and right:
Every procedure is efficient. The doctor even gave my son a small toy for being so calm during the treatment. If you are unsure about the communication, the doctors there speak good English. I spoke with several and there were zero issues. Now, I will walk in there again in three months with confidence, as my son has finally found his perfect dentist. It is truly an achievement for us all.
CHOSUN UNIVERSITY DENTAL HOSPITAL
gwangjunewsgic.com 2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju 39 but only one needed urgent treatment. Yes, there were student doctors there, and they helped him hold his mouth steady, but to my surprise, he did not need any restraining belt, and I was so happy that he did not even flinch or scream once! I thought it was a miracle. I went home after paying 80,000 won and booked another trip there for the next three months because they have to regularly check his baby teeth. I cannot believe that I did not go there in the beginning. It is closer to home and my son seemed to enjoy the trip.
조선대학교치과병원 Tel: 062-220-3800 Website: http://dent.chosun.ac.kr/
Chosun University Dental Hospital is located near downtown and is adjacent to Chosun University. It is a big, white building in front of the big road, so you cannot miss it. The parking is spacious and free if you have had prior treatment there. It usually just takes us a maximum of one hour from the examination to the X-ray, and then finally the treatment. There is a book corner in the pediatric unit where the kids can read. There are several doctors and many chairs, so you will not have to wait long. They do not charge us more than they should and, most of all, my son loves it! If you have a child and are looking for a dentist, either for the kid or for yourself, I truly recommend going there.
BACKGROUND
SIGNS OF PROGRESS
Starting in the early months of 2022, there were signs that a major transformation was taking place. The large wall on the east side was repainted and covered with beautiful, colorful murals. The police box on the south end (whose purpose I’ve yet to determine, as it had nothing to do with making sure
In the Chosun University back gate area, there is a street named Jisan-ro that runs from the campus to the entrance of Chosun University Girls’ High School. The street is roughly five hundred meters long and is bordered by a large wall on its east side and numerous coffee shops, convenience stores, print shops, and the like on its west. Over the years, this street had become a de facto parking lot for drivers that could either not find or refused to use the massive parking lot located fifty meters away. In what can only be described as a complete triumph for the students and other pedestrians who need to walk down the road on a daily basis, the street has recently undergone a complete transformation and is now one of the most beautiful, unique, and walkable streets in the entire city.
A Triumph for Pedestrians
▲ As these and other pictures from daum.net’s street view show, Jisanro had been, from time immemorial, a complete and utter gong show.
By William Urbanski
The road is basically two lanes wide and for years and years lacked any sort of sidewalk, which was problematic for the many university, high school, and middle school students who make use of it. In addition to making the entire street look and feel like an industrial wasteland, the cars that parked along the east wall posed an enormous safety hazard to the students who were forced to walk around and between them, all the while dodging motorbikes and cars that whizzed by on the narrow strip of road that was left. Even delivery vans servicing the businesses along the street had no choice but to stop on said narrow strip of street, resulting in more or less complete blockage of the area. As far back as I can tell, there’s never been any sort of parking regulation taking place on the street. Since there was no parking enforcement, it’s understandable that over time people starting leaving their vehicles there all day. It’s safe to say that the street was in fact always meant to be used as a thoroughfare though, because it’s just not wide enough to be a two-way street, parking lot, and a pedestrian walkway all at once.
2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju gwangjunewsgic.com 40 40 COMMUNITY Opinion
Instagram: @will_il_gatto
The Author William Urbanski is the managing editor of the Gwangju News. He has a keen eye for parking spots and strong opinions about parking regulations.
cars weren’t clogging up the street) was removed. Most significantly, huge “No Parking” banners were hung along the wall and large planters were placed along the entire length of the street about two meters from the wall. These effectively blocked cars from parking against the wall and also created a safe walking path for pedestrians. As an added bonus, the planters made the whole area look aesthetically more pleasing. Cars were still allowed to pass along the street, and yes, there were still people who parked horizontally beside the planters, but overall, the street was much better and safer.
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Finally, this past July, the planters were reinstalled and the ground received fresh coats of paint and, just like that, what was once a deathtrap hellscape became, in my opinion, one of the most picturesque streets in the entire city. Sure, there are still people who willfully disobey the hard-to-miss “No Parking” banners that run along the entire street, but as a whole, it’s impossible for cars to park along the east wall. What this shows is that where the honor system fails, defensive architecture prevails.
After a few months, much to my chagrin, the planters were removed and replaced with tall and narrow orange cones bolted into the ground that were summarily ignored by most motorists. Over time, there were a few other configurations of planters and cones, but what became abundantly clear was that a well-considered redesign was taking shape. Then, in June of 2022, there were two significant developments. First of all, the street began to be used for pop-up markets. Second, the road itself was repaved and beautifully etched so that the ground looked like intricate brickwork.
Other districts of Gwangju would do well to take careful note of the superb changes that have taken place at the Chosun back gate area. Hopefully, other problematic and congested streets in the city will also undergo similar redesigns over the coming months and years.
▲ Well-thought-out urban design can create spaces that are cohesive, safe, beautiful, and functional. street with their cars (free of charge, by the way). But the fact of the matter is that people who want to park in the area have always had a choice to either leave their cars in the free parking lot nearby (that can accommodate well over 100 cars) or pay two thousand won per hour to park on the campus directly adjacent. All in all, I think this is a clear-cut case where changes have been made for the greater good, as the convenience of about twenty-five drivers doesn’t outweigh the safety of hundreds.
Sure, there are some “losers” in this situation; namely the people who lost the privilege of jamming up the
PEOPLE FIRST It’s difficult to overemphasize just how much foot traffic Jisan-ro receives. Especially during the semester, the street is just as busy as the downtown area on weekends. By redeveloping the area, the city is sending a strong and clear message that the wellbeing and safety of pedestrians (and especially students) is a priority. It also rejuvenates the area, transforming the act of walking down the street from what was once a harrowing nightmare into an enjoyable stroll.
In the heart of the CNU Gwangju campus...” It’d be pretty alluring to Chonnam National University students if this piece of writing were to start with such a line. But that’s not the case. At least, not in the exact geographical terms. But that’s not to say it’s far from the facts. The place I’m about to introduce to you to is very close to the perimeter of the Chonnam National University campus in Gwangju. It’s wellknown among local Korean students and foreigners as well. Considered a “cheap eats” and an “authentic local cuisine” spot, one thing for sure is that it’s a must-try for anyone visiting the area, student or not. Our “story” revolves around the CheonJiYeon Grilled Pork Belly restaurant. It’s kind of ironic if I do say so myself, as I am a Muslim, and... we don’t eat pork. However, as the curious cat I tend to be, when I initially discovered places after arriving in Gwangju, I landed on this restaurant’s doorsteps. The restaurant is more commonly known among the foreign student commuunity as the “dolpan bibim [돌판비빔, hot-stone mixed rice,] place.” To be clearer, dol [돌] is “rock” and pan [판] is a square-shaped plate. The restaurant is located not too far from the CNU Jilli Hall. It’s very easy to spot. It is known as a campus-friendly, budget-friendly, flavorful, and hospitable spot – all helping it preserve its reputation. To be frank, the aesthetics of the place, both indoors and outdoors, aren’t much to the average eye – similar to most local and authentic establishments. You are privileged to discover its charming points once you give the place a chance. And if by luck you are with a sentimental soul, you’ll truly bask in the melancholy and bittersweetness of its walls. Reminiscing the stories of hundreds of students who’ve been in your seat before you: where they could be, what kind of days they were having at their time, and how fleeting youth and time are. “
▲ Hot-stone mixed rice (dolpan bibim).
2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju gwangjunewsgic.com 42 DRINKS&FOOD Delightful, Delectable Local Cuisine Customer-Friendly and Budget-Friendly Eatery
By Yousra Feriel Drioua
only, and the main dish is quite filling. As sides, you’re served pickled yellow radish, kimchi, beansprouts, and pork (not pictured), in addition to an oddly refreshing and sweet, warm soy-paste bowl of soup. Speaking of side dishes, I sincerely appreciate the lady for being able to remember that I do not eat pork and not serve it to me, as I tend to be pescatarian in nonhalal establishments. Very subjectively, that’s one of the most endearing aspects of this eatery. Because it’s frequently visited by international students, the owner has a knack for such dietary restrictions and excellent facial recognition skills. Making sure everyone feels welcomed and comfortable. Call it a sense for good business practices, but I choose to go for the sentiments. How could I not, when she gives free tangerines in winter and candy throughout the Toseasons?wrap this up, let’s talk real “food business.” Aka flavor. Do you see the black stone beneath all that goodness? It’s the actual dolpan. That’s where all the hype comes from. The black stone plate arrives sizzling on your table with a gentle warning from the owner not to touch it. You may let your food get a little sun-kissed burnt from the bottom before drizzling it with the sublime restaurant signature gochujang sauce and mixing the whole thing. Or the other way to go about it is to mix everything, flatten it, and let it fry in the leftover heat from the stone. The first bite is very much authentic Korean cuisine in one spoon – a little sweet, a little sour, and Yet, getting back to our topic. Once you set foot inside the restaurant, you’re met with a bright smile and the most cheerful welcoming from the owner: a Korean lady with short black hair. She will usually let you choose your seat unless you’re somewhat like me: quite indecisive. Then she’ll have you seated herself. Whether you’re enjoying a lone meal or rushing in with a group of friends, the place offers a variety of seats to keep you comfortable as you enjoy your meal. With a classic BBQ stove in the center of each table. The menu is simple, quite objective, and cuts to the chase. So, when you’re heading to this place, you know you’re specifically craving for something. The prices range from a 3,000-won bibimbap [비빔밥, mixed Korean rice,] as the cheapest option to 7,000won options as the most pricey ones. Considering the variables and logistics, that’s not a deal you’ll come by every day. Nevertheless, the place is most famous for its signature dish the “dolpan bibimbap.” The most standard and meatless version is 4,000 won. Naturally, the price goes up depending on what other toppings you request. So, whether you’re vegetarian or not, you’ll manage to get yourself a taste. I’d even hazard say “vegan” if you ask to hold the eggs and don’t mind dining at an establishment that handles animal produce. The dish in the photo is the original dolpan bibimbap with tuna added and accompanied by the classic Korean assortment of side dishes. It might seem like a small portion at first glance, but it is for one person Restaurant interior. ▲ The front of the restaurant.
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BEYONCÉ – “PLASTIC OFF THE SOFA”
Each month, Daniel Springer of the Gwangju Foreign Language Network (GFN) picks his favorite newly released tunes that you may not have heard yet, along with some upcoming albums and EPs that you might want to keep on your radar. — Ed. a little salty. You get crispy bits from the charring of the stone and tender mouthfuls of what didn’t get to touch the pan. Subtle hints of the flavor of everything but never too much of anything. Does that make sense? Let’s call it a campus-friendly, local Korean culinary symphony of tastes. Hopefully, this piece of writing will serve as the written trailer for the establishment, and will leave you intrigued enough to visit whether you are interested in the décor of the place or are merely trying to save up on cash. Whether you’re simply looking for diverse local food experiences to make the most of your journey in Gwangju or are a student searching for meaning in every nook and cranny of the CNU area, like myself, this place has got you covered with taste, atmosphere, and price.
The restaurant’s simple menu.
The seventh studio album from the Houstonborn Personification of Pop Quality is here, it’s called Renaissance, and it’s just quality you cannot deny even with the SJW ruckus over language that forced a change in the lyrics and therefore the album post-release. This is one of those moments where the digital age of music is clearly inferior, as it would be pretty sweet to have a vinyl copy of the original album.
The Author Yousra Feriel Drioua is a KGSP 21 scholar from Algeria, and previously a CNU Korean language trainee and currently a mass communication and journalism graduate school student at Kangwon National University. She seeks to learn and gain various experiences all around. She loves coffee, driving, deep conversations with friends and writing. Instagram @ myyilgi
천지연삼겹살 Address Seoljuk-ro
Top of The Drop
(Chonnam
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Phone
PINE BARONS – “BABY BLUE” This is a band out of South New Jersey who’ve been putting together some very interesting projects since debuting in 2017. Their latest is a tribute By Daniel J. Springer
광주 북구 설죽로214번길
Okay, we’re just going to get this out of the way to start because, as usual, the latest Bey bombshell sits astride the world like it’s riding for fun, and you can’t help but stare, and it’s almost impossible to hate.
CHEONJIYEON GRILLED PORK BELLY 214 beon-gil 90, Buk-gu, Gwangju National University back gate area) 90 : 062-522-9210
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The band is a duo consisting of Cocteau Twins’ lead singer Elizabeth Fraser and romantic partner Damon Reece, releasing a self-titled collection of five songs on an EP that just crackles and glimmers away. Only five songs, these tracks are a decade in the making, but Fraser, after all these years, still has a voice that could make a child possessed by demons coo peacefully.
NICK LENG – “EASY”
You might have been starting to wonder where Meg Remy had gone since the release of 2020’s stunning Heavy Light. Of course, the answer to that is locked down with the rest of us, but clearly thinking a lot harder about the larger implications of COVID, with this tune wondering about both the overconsumption of the wealthy amidst this crisis and Remy’s own complicity in that.
MAGGIE ROGERS – “ANYWHERE WITH YOU”
If you were looking at this band name totally unaware of what this was, do trust you are not alone.
SUN’S SIGNATURE – “BLUEDUSK”
The artist that was once known with “Sandy” attached is now just “Alex G,” and this tune heralds God Save the Animals, which comes out in full on September 23 (along with like, ALL of the others for this year… it’s insane). This tune sees Alex G fluttering between a folktronica base and to the genius of Fishmans, the cult-favorite band from the 1990’s lead by the ever androgenous and experimental Shinji Sato. I Love Fish is out in full, as of July 8, and shows the band’s growing maturity in approach, having very competently put their own twist on the Fishmans sound – not an easy thing to pull off.
WHITNEY – “BLUE”
US GIRLS – “SO TYPICALLY NOW”
There may be artists in the last decade who rose to the very apex of the game quicker than Maggie Rogers, but the student who turned the head of Pharrell years ago feels like the real deal. Here to stay. It’s rather disorienting to think that this summer’s Surrender LP is only Rogers’ sophomore album, but it is. Oh, it’s also absolutely smashing stuff.
Throughout this hypnotic and intricate joint layered with atmospherics of all kinds, a beautiful piano, and buildups that groove so hard that once the wave crashes over, the lyrics state “you make it look easy.” And that’s just what Nick Leng does, however impossible it may seem at times, as the LA-based South African takes you through the jagged motions of every excruciating multi-layered dream cake of Spirals, which dropped July 22.
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ALEX G – “CROSS THE SEA”
The on-the-rise Chicago indie outfit really hit a major note with 2019’s Forever Turned Around and 2020’s Candid, the latter being a collection of very diverse covers of influences for the band that was just perfectly delivered. With the release of this tune, the duo of Max Kakacek and Julien Ehrlich have announced their next album Spark, due out on September 16.
RON TRENT (FEAT. KHRUANGBIN) – “FLOS POTENTIA (SUGAR, COTTON, TOBACCO)” If you’re like me and a big fan of deep house music, you could not have missed the Chicago veteran Ron Trent’s reinterpretation of “Shida” featured on the Mordechai Remixes LP. Now, the trio that claims Houston as their home, even though they are from some outer region of another galaxy, have added some elements to this track, a truly expansive and macrocosmic bit of piano-centered Afro-Cuban dance music that truly lets the mind wander. Khruangbin will also be in Seoul November 12, so do mark that if you were unaware previously.
NURDJANA – “DO THE RIGHT THING (REVISION)” One EP we neglected to shout out last month was this wonderful Dutch Canada-based artist’s Coming Home. This is a wonderful collection of Daptoneesque soul tunes that are both a tribute to and completion of the songwriting work of her father, a touching collection of incredibly well-made soul tunes.
RINA SAWAYAMA – “HOLD THE GIRL”
2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju gwangjunewsgic.com 46 August LPs Lauv – All 4 Nothing (August 5) Kasabian – The Alchemist’s Euphoria (August 5) Danger Mouse & Black Thought – Cheat Codes (August Kiwi12) Jr. – Chopper (August 12) Osees – A Foul Form (August 12) Hot Chip – Freakout/Release (August 19) Cass McCombs – Heartmind (August 19) Panic! At the Disco – Viva Las Vengeance (August 19) The Mountain Goats – Bleed Out (August 19) Ezra Furman – All of Us Flames (August 26) Julia Jacklin – Pre Pleasure (August 26) Stella Donnelly – Flood (August 26) September LPs Two Door Cinema Club – Keep on Smiling (September 2) Built to Spill – When the Wind Forgets Your Name (September 9) Sampa The Great – As Above, So Below (September 9) John Legend – Legend (September 9) Santigold – Spirituals (September 9) Sudan Archives – Natural Brown Prom Queen (September 9) Blackpink – Born Pink (September 16) Death Cab for Cutie – Asphalt Meadows (September 16) Suede – Autofiction (September 16) The Beths – Expert in a Dying Field (September 16) The Mars Volta – s/t (September 16) Whitney – Spark (September 16) Say She She – Prism (September 23) Alex G – God Save the Animals (September 23) Editors – EBM (September 23) Makaya McCraven – In These Times (September 23) Christine & The Queens – Redcar les adorables étoiles (September 23) Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Cool It Down (September 30) Off! – Free LSD (September 30) Titus Andronicus – The Will to Live (September 30) moments of ambience to create a cut that feels both semi-choral and right next to your ear at the same time.
The Author Daniel J. Springer (aka “Danno”) is the creator, host, writer, editor, and producer of “The Drop with Danno,” broadcasting nightly on GFN 98.7 FM in Gwangju and 93.7 FM in Yeosu from 8 to10 p.m. Prior to this, he was a contributor to several shows on TBS eFM in Seoul, along with being the creator and co-host of “Spacious” and “White Label Radio” on WNUR in Chicago. You can find “The Damyang Drop,” his monthly collaborative playlist with The Damyang House, on YouTube and Spotify. Instagram, Twitter, Facebook: @gfnthedrop
This is the title track to Rina animalbewhichcareer-thirdSawayama’sLP,promisestoaverydifferentthanthe sophomore record Sawayama, logically thrown down after the London-based artist’s 2017 debut Rina. The album has been described as a development of ideas from “across the pop spectrum,” and pop those influences certainly are, but somewhat surprising, nonetheless.
Upcoming SeptemberEvents2022 BEER FEST GWANGJU Dates: August 31 – September 5, 2022 Location: 30 Sangmu-nuri-ro, Seo-gu, Kimdaejung Convention Center 광주 서구 상무누리로 30 김대중컨벤션센터 Telephone: 062-611-2000 Admission: Free Website: http://www.beerfestgwangju.com/ GWANGJU ACE FAIR 2022 광주에이스페어 Dates: September 22-25, 2022 Location: 30 Sangmu-nuri-ro, Seo-gu, Kimdaejung Convention Center 광주 서구 상무누리로 30 김대중컨벤션센터 Phone: 062-611-2246 Website: acefair.or.kr MUJU FIREFLIES FESTIVAL 무주반딧불축제 Dates: August 27 – September 4, 2022 Location: 326-14 Hanpungru-ro, Muju-eup, Muju-gun, Jeollabuk-do 전북 무주군 무주읍 한풍루로 326-14 무주등나무운동장 Admission: Free Telephone: 063-324-2440 Website: http://2021.firefly.or.kr/ 2022 MOKPO MUSIC PLAY 목포 뮤직플레이 Dates: September 30 – October 2, 2022 Location: Gatbawi Culture Town, Mokpo, Jeollanam-do 전남 목포시 남농로 135 갓바위문화타운 Admission: Free Telephone: 070-5153-5851 Website: http://www.mokpomusicplay.com/main.php YEOSU TURTLE SHIP FESTIVAL 여수 거북선축제 Dates: September 30 – October 2, 2022 Location: Jongpo Marine Park, Isunshin-gwangjang-ro 146, Yeosu, Jeollanam-do 전남 여수시 이순신광장로 146여수 종포해양공원 Admission: Free Telephone: 061-664-5400 Website: http://jinnamje.com/page_mrJM15 YEONGGWANG BULGAP MOUNTAIN LILY FESTIVAL 영광불갑산상사화축제 Dates: September 16–25, 2022, 9 a.m. – 10 p.m. Location: 401-1 Moak-ri, Bulgap-myeon, Bukgap Temple area, Yeonggwang-gun, Jeollanam-do 전남 영광군 불갑면 모악리 401-1 불갑사관광지 일원 Admission: Free Telephone: 061-350-5752 Website: http://상사화축제.com/ *Note: All festivals and events mentioned above are subject to change depending on the COVID-19 situation. 47
Capturing Beautiful Places Around Korea
Photo Essay
The Photographer Kim Soo-il is from South Korea. He’s 27 years old and majoring in automotive engineering. Photography has become his passion. He loves taking pictures during his travels. What is more, he wants to become a professional photographer someday.
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By Kim Soo-il Only Me and My Camera
People take lots of things with them when they travel. When it comes to my travel time, it is my camera, myself, and I. I really love traveling around Korea and taking some amazing shots. Whenever I get some spare time, I immediately start to arrange my travel to the cities on my bucket list. From the south to the north, from east to west, I would like to visit all the beautiful spots in South Korea. In this photo essay, you can enjoy photos taken in Pohang, Tongyeong, and Dangjin.
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The book’s opening is provocative. We meet Amma, a true political activist who is black, feminist, lesbian, and proud of it. Amma appears far from downtrodden and in fact has become a successful plawright. But like everyone, Amma has a history. She would do things like pour a pint of beer over the head of a director who produced a play that offended her political sensibilities. Years later, her views do change and she becomes more forgiving. She accepts the fact that, yes, her father “was a patriarch but her mother was right when she said, he is of his time and culture.” Her daughter, Yazz, is a competent and decisive woman, not quick to “accuse people of racism or microaggressions.” And she does not always agree with her mother, saying, “I’m humanitarian, which is on a much higher plane than Muchfeminism.”furtheralong the continuum in the opposite direction is Nzinga, a character who sees oppression everywhere. She suggests that her lover’s past relationships with blondes is a “sign of self-loathing, a brainwashing by the white beauty ideal.” She scorned black woman who sounded British. She saw “internalized racism everywhere.” Friendship offered by white women was fake. Books by men should not be read because “one cannot be a true womanist with male voices in your head.” But the author, while presenting these views, does not offer support and, in one exchange over slavery, it is pointed out “that the African man had also sold Africans into slavery, so it was a lot more complex than Therethat.”are four chapters in the book divided into twelve sections, each of which is named after a female character. At first, the chapters seem disparate, but as one reads on, the interwovenness of the women’s lives becomes clear. The underlying theme may appear to be of sisterhood, but it goes beyond that to be a statement about our shared humanity. The connectivity of the relationships is also a successful literary ploy for keeping the reader engaged and on guard for the next surprise.
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Girl,OtherWoman, By Bernardine Evaristo
Reviewed by Michael Attard
Book Review
Can you relate to black radical lesbian feminism? If you can, or even if you cannot, this novel is for you. Discrimination and racism, real and perceived, have affected the lives of millions for generations throughout centuries. The ensuing injustices have been and continue to be particularly hard felt by women of color. The author, Bernardine Evaristo, through her multitude of characters, opens doors and windows for readers, allowing us to experience the full lives of black women with their particular handicaps, struggles, failures, and successes.
Please withhold judgement. The author does not use the story as a platform for a personal rant condemning all white people, especially males. There is no advocacy for racial or gender warfare. Rather, there are stories of human experience and personal encounters told with empathy and humor to which we can all relate.
Underlying everything is culture. Many references are about the foods which come from their family homeland and have been prepared for generations. The author keeps the story and characters real through these celebratory, everyday meals. We are made aware that these women, now in England, are individuals within a diaspora. Their roots have been scattered across the globe, but their culture has survived. For some of these women, it is a struggle of conscience. Bummi hoped that her daughter Carole would return to her culture, “and even eat with her hands again instead of side-glancing her mama for doing so.” It seemed that Carole’s university degree had “led to the rejection of her true culture.”
Girl, Woman, Other is Bernardine Evaristo’s eighth novel and the winner of the 2019 Booker Prize.
The Reviewer
Michael Attard is a Canadian who has lived in Gwangju since 2004. Though officially retired, he still teaches a few private English classes. He enjoys reading all kinds of books and writes for fun. When the weather is nice, you may find him on a hiking trail.
There are male characters in the book, and while they are minor, their presence does help to keep the story real and interesting. Most of them are good men, but there are always a few idiots. Winsome was so thrilled with her successful and handsome sonin-law that he made her swoon. She began to have all kinds of thoughts about him. As long as she kept them in her head, she determined that it was okay. But those thoughts did not remain in her head. “She went to war with her morals … guess which side won? … she deserved to have him.”
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The subjects of sexuality and gender are infused throughout the book, and while they are explored through female characters, it is worth noting that the author is writing for both genders and in fact for everyone in between. I think it is fair to say that the author sees sexuality and gender as existing along a spectrum. In other words, just like light refracting into a rainbow of colors, people refract according to their personal wavelength. Thus, there should be no judgements when the widowed Bummi finds herself sexually attracted to a woman at her church. But because of self-assessed shame, Bummi stopped seeing her lover. It is this ingrained cultural gender identity that the author is rejecting. The character Megan becomes Morgan and embraces a gender-free identity. She is happy with where she is along the spectrum. Yes, she wanted to get rid of her breasts, but she had no desire to, “deepen her voice, grow body hair, and phalloplasty was never on the Thecards.”book is an exploration of how we learn about who we are as opposed to what we have been told about what we are. This is a story of acceptance and growth.
2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju gwangjunewsgic.com 54 ARTS&CULTURE Comic Corner
The Author Yun Hyoju was born and raised in Gwangju, and somehow ended up married to an Irish guy named Alan. She has been working on her short comic, “Alan and Me,” which is about their daily life. She publishes a new comic every week on Instagram. It can be found here: @alan_andme.
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2022SeptemberNews,Gwangju gwangjunewsgic.com Created by Jon Dunbar 1 Mayor Gi-jung 5 Castilian knight El ___ 8 ___ Friday’s 11 Woodwind instrument 12 Pie ___ mode (2 words) 13 River that starts in North Jeolla 14 Chinese currency 16 Wild West lawman Wyatt ___ 17 New magazine, to Stan Lee 18 Sleeves to beat the heat 20 Ox collar 22 The Beatles’ “___ the Walrus” (2 words) 23 Very small 25 Someone who blames 29 Baseball player Alex Rodriguez 30 Not transgender 31 Brand for shoes or missiles 32 Hindu god 34 Opposite of subtracted 35 Signed agreement 36 Imperial unit of volume (2 words) 37 Guarantee, again 40 Security company 43 Read a QR code 44 Androgynous, gender-neutral, and unisex (plural) 46 Bloc of wealthy countries 47 Cereal grain 48 Jazz singer Simone 49 Imperial unit for speed 50 Gov’t tourism unit 51 “ The Gift of the ___” Look for the answers to this crossword puzzle to appear in October in Gwangju News Online (www.gwangjunewsgic.com). 56 1 Korean nuclear plant 2 Lincoln and Shinzo 3 Wealthy part of southern Seoul 4 Jewel 5 Narrow boat 6 Goes with Hankook, Dong-A, Chosun 7 What the things in 6 Down are 8 You can try these in Boseong County 9 Gyeonggi city bordering Namyangju 10 Little troublemaker 13 Island south of Korean Peninsula 15 Gross 19 Located near Caps Lock 21 Feature of streaming services (2 words) 23 Playground game 24 Epoch 25 Coastal inlet 26 August activity for children at ACC 27 ___ out a living 28 One of the colors on the Korean flag 30 Major holiday in September 33 Distress signal 34 Baldwin or Guinness 36 Corn chip brand 37 15-nation FTA 38 “ To ___ his own” 39 “___ the crack of dawn” (2 words) 41 China’s Xiaoping 42 Taiwan's Ing-wen 43 Kyrgyzstan currency 45 CJ ___ C R O S S W O R D P U Z Z L E ACROSS DOWN
Monday – Friday 9:30 a.m. – 6 p.m. Saturday 8:30 a.m. – 5p.m. Or leave us a message anytime and we will get back to you as soon as we can! GIC광주국제교류센터OpeningHoursGIC광주국제교류센터Ch GIC’s new Kakao Talk Channel! Now, with our new Kakao Talk Channel, you can get the latest information on GIC’s events or inquire on any of GIC’s programs! Add us now on Kakao :) Supported Languages Korean, English, Chinese, Japanese, Indonesian
주 최 주관 October 10-13, 2022. Kimdaejung Convention Center.
