The Korean Minority in China - Essay Example

?The Vicissitudes of Korean Diaspora: The Korean Communities in the US, Japan and China Introduction The Korean diaspora is composed of people with most complex experiences which are the product of complex interactions between many historical factors. If we look at the Korean diaspora in China, Japan and the United States, they are rich in their diversified cultural experiences and unified historical memories. The Korean diaspora in different countries are extremely heterogeneous and retain different kinds of relations with their motherland. The Korean Minority in China The Korean-origin people in China have shown remarkable flexibility in being assimilated to the indigenous population in China. The north-eastern China started receiving Koreans from the thirteenth century itself. The Koreans in China are renowned for keeping their unique Korean traditions intact while assimilating the local languages and ideas. Many Korean-origin people in China, according to Piao, “do not know how to write or speak Korean, they have maintained their unique Korean customs. Such customs as not marrying while in formal mourning, women not binding their feet, and placing ceremonial food on a special table for the elderly remained until the 1940s” (48). There has also been a long tradition of Korean dissidents migrating to other countries, especially to China. During the period of Japanese colonialism in Korea, especially between 1910 and 1930, thousands of Koreans opposed to the regime have fled to China. The extensive migration of Korean peasants to Manchuria was even facilitated by the Japanese imperialists. Although oppressed by the ruling elites and by the conditions of misery, the Korean diaspora in China have rigorously upheld many aspects of their original nationality. By the establishment of different kinds of autonomous units after the establishment of the communist rule, the Koreans in China have not only been able to preserve their nationality but also to develop it significantly. The Chinese Communist party (CCP) too had played an important role in protecting the minority culture of the Koreans in China by organizing Korean cultural workers and Korean literary clubs. It was the direct result of CCP’s policy that “in areas that contained a concentration of one nationality, national autonomous regions should be established and the nationality’s language and writing system should be developed, along with the preservation of the nationality’s customs, traditions and religious beliefs”, argues Piao (75). Also, land reform policies initiated by the communist government in China have largely helped the Koreans diaspora to enhance their material development. Koreans in Japan In Japanese language, the immigrants from Korea are popularly called as sangokujin in a derogative fashion. The Koreans in Japan have always had a tensed relation with their old colonial masters and vice versa too. This tension still is expressed as “the continued ambiguity of the Korean community’s position between ‘troublesome’ new immigrants and Japanese nationals” as pointed by Chung (1). It has led to lower rates of naturalization of Koreans in Japan even after many decades of their arrival in Japan. It could also be argued, along the lines of Chung, that although the Koreans in Japan find it easy to be assimilated with the natives by fluently speaking Japanese and marrying with Japanese origins, “the law rate of naturalization suggests that a significant proportion of the Korean community has made a conscious decision to retain its Korean nationality” (1). As former, colonial subjects, the Koreans have found it difficult to be integrated with the Japanese oppressive regime. It does not mean that the Korean diaspora in Japan is devoid of representation in the civil society. Although the Japanese state and society asserts the indigenous homogeneity of the Japanese people vis-a-vis the Korean immigrants, the Koreans have asserted themselves into the national scene through democratic participation and activism. Still, the argument goes that the Japanese national space and the citizenship law regime are unable to include the wider participation of the Korean minority. Here emerges a difficult situation of assimilation without integration. However, Chung asserts that “the quality of state- defined citizenship in Japan has also created political opportunities for the Koreans to exercise a form of citizenship as long-term, tax-paying non-members of Japanese civil society” (9). It means that the Korean diaspora in Japan has a lot fight against the discriminatory and exclusionary policies of the Japanese sate and the ultra-conservative elements. The Little Korea in America The Americans usually think the Koreans in the US as single homogenous racial group. But, the Koreans do not form a Little Korea in the United States. On the other hand, they closely interact with the local people and actively participate in the national mainstream although they follow much of the Korean traditions and customs in their private lives. The Koreans in America have always faced the difficulty of dealing with others’ perception about themselves. Koreans are especially seen as a group actively looking for upward social mobility. At times, the younger generation feels the identity crisis that what is truly Korean in them and what is not. The repression in Korea by the military dictatorship was the major reason that accelerated immigration to America. It is interesting to look at the class composition of the Korean community in the United States to see how the popular impressions on them are often wrong. Most of the Koreans in America are of working class backgrounds. Even the professionals who migrated by late are underemployed and living mostly in the suburbs. According to Cumings, the Koreans in America are found to be encouraging their children to take up science subjects as “since in many other fields there are “glass ceilings” that prevent-Korean Americans from getting top jobs- especially in American corporations, which at the top levels remain overwhelmingly segregated minorities of white males” (458). The model minority narrative although contain much fiction than reality. A small minority of the Koreans in America actually makes into prestigious institutions and glamorous jobs. The Korean-Americans recently noted for their tendency to return to Korea causing what is termed as a reverse brain drain. Conclusion The Korean diaspora is generally seen as hardworking and peaceful people whether it is in China or in the United States. They tend to be easily assimilated into the cultures they adopt. Still, the Korean diaspora have the wonderful capacity to take their customs and traditions wherever they go. The Koreans found to be keeping their roots in the peninsula intact although they easily get integrated into their host countries. However, the Koreans in outside Korea are always perceived with a number of prejudices. One thing is common to all the Koreans that they are equally haunted by the memories of divided homeland and historical injustices which made them expatriates. Works Cited Chung, Erin Aeran. “Korean Voluntary Associations in Japanese Civil Society”, Japan Policy Research Institute, Working Paper, No. 69, (2000). pp. 1-9: Web. Cumings, Bruce. Korea’s Place in the Sun. New York: W.W Norton & Company, (2005). Print. Piao, Changyu. “The History of Koreans in China and the Yanbian Autonomous Prefecture”, in Dae-Sook Suh and Edward J. Shuttle, eds., Koreans in China. Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, (1990). pp. 44-77. Print. Read More