During the time of my stay in South Korea, a bit of political scandal broke out involving the President of the country at the time, Park Geun-hye. There were all sorts of rumors and stories going around, and it was making headlines around the world with the outlandish theories and revelations gaining light of day. At Fun Caricature, customers would sometimes speak about their feelings on the matter and chastise or judge each other for their past voting decisions... I remember one man, in particular, being especially offended that his date had been a supporter of the President years prior. Ironically, the climate back in the US wasn't too different in that sense- since it was nearing election time the Clinton versus Trump debate was raging loud and heavy on social media and especially vocal citizens were voicing or wearing hats emblazoned with their stances at gatherings. Reddit was awash in trolls who's simpering obsession with one of the potentials led them to try to sabotage and domineer various other subreddits, leading to a clap-back that rippled through nearly the entire site...it was a wild time. It's not a coincidence that I happened to be outside the country for this last election cycle, or the one prior... I certainly could have gotten more involved, of course, and still participated from a distance with the right forms and efforts, but I was too busy living in the moment and too under-informed to really want to make that decision. I've historically had little faith in my singular ability to contribute or effect much change when it comes to these things, so aside from having my own opinions on Facebook, I try to disengage. I've met plenty of ex-pats who doggedly follow the debates, news, and trends, though... and when the actual election time came, I can't deny that I, too, was glued to my screen waiting to see the final verdict. There was a certain irony in watching the whirlwind of publicity and soap-box orators surrounding the US elections as the scandal broke in Korea. The scandal had nearly everything; President Park was charged with misappropriation of funds, allegiance with a cult leader going decades and multiple generations back, there were multiple assassinations in her history: tragically, her parents, who were the leaders of the country at one point, too. So she's like a political Batman? She seemed born and bred to be a leader, and her father was a much-liked figure who's prestige likely helped in her election. This made the fall from grace and the resultant fallout all the more intense. There were protests throughout Seoul with hundreds of thousands of citizens coming out to show their outrage. The most outstanding thing, to me, however, was how despite their upset the overall tone of the protests was positive and communal- there were trucks driving down the crowded streets blasting music that the masses would sing to. There were men with babies strapped on their backs holding candles, and mothers holding the hands of their young children in one hand and a candle in the other as they walked down the streets expressing their discontent. Though the citizens were upset, the protests were extremely peaceful and I felt very safe as I navigated my way through the densely packed crowds trying to make my way home for the evening. There were, indubitably, a lot of police there to oversee the proceedings- but it felt remarkable, to me, as an American, where news of the election results lead people to destroy private property and try to block traffic on busy highways. There were food trucks proliferating the streets, busy roads closed by the police to vehicular traffic outside of the protest vans pumping tunes to motivate the chants of the citizens... it seemed like a good balance of freedom of speech: expressing your disdain and upset with the current situation while maintaining a jovial, block-party-like atmosphere where people literally felt safe taking their children. It had snowed earlier in the day, which made it all the more magical.
Until next time!
💖
XOXO,
NAU
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