Hate is a Virus: A Foreigner’s Perspective on the Pandemic in South Korea

Although the one-year anniversary of the global pandemic declaration has passed, this week marked one year of COVID-19 impact for our household. One year ago this week, the “distant” pandemic became real, as Peter’s university quickly made the decision to go on-line and the hospital where I worked began scrambling for PPE and isolation rooms for patients we knew would present with the novel coronavirus. My gym closed, our church stopped all in-person meetings, and our plans with friends were canceled. It all got very real, and that was before we witnessed the overwhelming loss of human life that was to come.

Experiencing the effects of a pandemic first in the United States and now in South Korea has been a source of emotional highs and lows this year. It also has provided many learning opportunities in comparing and contrasting two nation’s responses to these unprecedented times. Certainly, we have felt more comfortable and safer with South Korea’s handling of COVID. This week, however, our two nations are experiencing events in parallel that have caused us to pause for deeper reflection. What does it mean to be a “foreigner” as the world grapples with the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic?

South Korea

As of March 19, there have been 97,757 cases of COVID-19 reported in South Korea. 7,264,941 tests have been performed. There are 463 new local cases on this date, about 30% of them in the greater Seoul area. (Imported cases from other countries of those still in travel quarantine are counted separately.) The average number of new cases in the country has remained in the 400s for the past week.

Vital Statistics

Total cases confirmed since January 2020: 97,757
Total persons deceased since January 2020: 1,690
Fatality rate: 1.4%
Patients currently isolated (either at home or in a facility): 6,544

In South Korea, these numbers are considered very high, and the government is expressing concern about another potential spike in virus numbers, leading to further restrictions. Meanwhile, the vaccination program started here at the end of February with healthcare workers and those living in care facilities. As of March 19, the government reports that 659,475 vaccines have been given, with plans to ramp up the pace when more vaccine arrives at the end of March. They have now ordered enough vaccine for everyone living here to be innoculated by the end of the year. Although we likely won’t be here long enough for our group to come up, this is a good thing for the country.

In Seoul, we’re under Level 2 restrictions, meaning that most businesses are open but must close by 10pm. Primary and secondary schools are currently meeting in-person, but many university classes are still on-line. Gatherings of more than four people are banned and have been so since December.

The Trouble with Foreigners

On March 8, the government of Gyeonggi-do, the province surrounding Seoul, ordered all foreign workers living in the province to be tested for COVID-19 before March 22. This impacted about 85,000 foreign workers in 25,000 different workplaces with at least one foreign employee. Failure to comply could result in the employee being fined up to the equivalent of about $2500 USD. The concern began with clusters of COVID infections that sprang up in workplace dormitories often utilized by migrant workers, but the mandate was rolled out to include all foreign workers.

On March 17, the Seoul city government issued a similar administrative order requiring all foreign workers in Seoul to be tested for COVID-19 before March 31. This has caused mass confusion, as the government has not explained well exactly who the order is meant to cover. There are about 60,000 foreign workers in Seoul, and so far those working for embassies or foreign governments have been exempted. There are rumors that unemployed foreigners and students are exempt, but no one seems sure. Some universities and other employers of foreign workers are resisting the order and have called the testing mandate discriminatory.

The testing mandates have outraged many foreigners and allies in South Korea, who are questioning the logic of testing all non-Koreans but not creating similar requirements for Korean nationals. Forums for international expats on various social media platforms have included few other discussions for days. Workers in Gyeonggi-do have complained about waiting for hours at testing sites, only to be told that there are too many people to test in one day, and they will have to come back and try again.

The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRC) announced on Friday that it would begin an investigation of whether this order violates immigrants’ human rights. The Korea Herald quoted the NHRC position stating, “Policies that exclude or separate immigrants can cause negative perceptions and discrimination against immigrants, shake the foundation of social integration, solidarity and trust, and even lead to hate crimes based on race.”

While we are in favor of ongoing testing, this mandate has been tough to understand. As we’ve discussed previously, Korea is a homogenous and insular society with a proportionally small number of immigrants (less than 5% of the population). There were concerns about discrimination against non-Koreans even prior to COVID. In a 2019 survey by the Seoul Metropolitan government, 57.3% of foreign residents in Seoul reported experiencing discrimination based on their nationality. Though we have experienced no violence here, we have been turned away from at least one restaurant based on our ethnicity, and we have had multiple people (quite noticeably) move away from us on the subway and in other public spaces. Expat workers have shared with us many instances of being treated differently at work based on their nationality.

You may remember I use the word “foreigner” to describe us because this is the word the Korean government uses. Though there are many wonderful things about this country and its people, its tendency toward xenophobia is not one of them, and according to many immigrants here this has worsened since the pandemic began. For many non-Korean residents, being singled out for testing feels like just the latest instance of anti-foreigner sentiment.

United States

In Atlanta-area spas this week, a young Caucasian man murdered eight people, six of whom were Asian (four of those of Korean descent). This brutality has rightfully ignited conversations about the plight of Asian populations in the United States, which have seen instances of violence and hatred increase since the COVID pandemic began last year. The group ‘Stop AAPI (Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders) Hate’ has so far received reports of 3,292 incidents of discrimination or harrassment that occurred in the U.S. in 2020. (This number continues to grow as more incidents are reported retroactively.)

According to the Pew Research Center, four-in-ten Black and Asian adults in the U.S. report that more people act as if they are uncomfortable around them since the pandemic began. Almost as many adults in the same survey reported that it has become more common for people to express racist views about Asians than it was before the pandemic. Asian Americans also have reported instances of verbal harrassment, shunning, physical assault, and being refused service based on their ethnicity, as well as a smaller proportion of on-line incidents. Asian Americans currently comprise about 6% of the population in the U.S.

It’s both infuriating and heart-breaking to think of all those in the “land of the free” who are not free because they fear for their safety and have their civil rights violated based on their race or ethnicity. And when they feel unsafe, are their voices heard so that change can begin?

Hate is a Virus

Xenophobia and resulting discrimination are not okay whoever they hurt, whether it be in the United States or in South Korea. If discrimination against foreigners in South Korea is outrageous, the hate that immigrants have faced in the U.S. is equally outrageous, and arguably is much worse because it has already led to numerous hate crimes. In every society, it is far too easy to create an “us” and a “them.” But by doing this, we also make it far too easy to distance ourselves and to discount those who are not “us.” When we de-humanize each other based on our differences, we are not nearly outraged enough on one another’s behalf, and we don’t become good allies.

We readily accept that we are people of privilege. While I have faced discrimination as a woman, I have never before experienced it based on my race or ethnicity. Being White has never before been a liability for us. Even in South Korea, we are not migrant workers, underpaid and living in an overcrowded dormitory. We have not faced physical violence based on our nationality. We have resources and allies, and still being singled out stings. Having others appear uncomfortable around us because of our ethnicity doesn’t physically harm us but is a really bad feeling.

My intention here has not been to bash South Korea or the United States. I hope that this perspective of being on both sides of the “privileged ethnicity” coin will cause some to pause for thought. If it’s not okay for Koreans to discriminate against people who look or sound different, it’s also not okay in the United States. Hate is a virus that we are responsible for stopping, before it has deadly consequences for anyone else.

Update: Under pressure from multiple foreign embassies, the Seoul city government on March 19 announced that it would revoke its order requiring mandatory testing for all foreigners. Instead, it is making a recommendation that all foreigners and Korean nationals working in crowded environments present voluntarily for testing.