Being Korean...But Not Really...Not Yet

“I’m not Chinese”

“I’m Korean, but I came here from America which is where I grew up”.

“I don’t speak Chinese”

“You’re damn right I know Kung-Fu!” (It’s a lie; I don’t know Kung-Fu)

These are just a few of the lines that I say or at least think of saying on a daily basis here in Namibia.

Apparently, everyone from America is white and everyone that is Asian is Chinese. If I’m not Chinese, I am Japanese. Once in a blue moon does someone actually guess that I am Korean. I have even been called Indian, both in the Native American sense and the Indian sense. There is a Native American themed restaurant chain here (don’t ask me why), and there are Indians here working on construction projects. I also once was mistaken for a New Zealander, but generally I am Chinese here. It’s not a big deal. It does not and will not affect my success here as a Peace Corps Volunteer. Is it extremely annoying? Yes. Can it be funny sometimes? Absolutely. Do I want to bang my head against a wall? Not quite yet.

I think this is due to equal parts ignorance and history/experience. I don’t think geography and cultural classes are of utmost importance here. When it comes to people of other backgrounds, knowledge seems to stem from history/experience and media.

At some point a pretty significant number of Chinese immigrants came to Namibia. Many Chinese own what are literally called China Shops. They sell really cheap and random products and they don’t typically hire Namibians. The other source of Chinese comes from construction. China has invested a lot in Namibia constructing roads and other infrastructure. In Swakopmund, I often get mistaken for a miner since a lot of Chinese work for the mines. These are the Chinese people that most Namibians have had experience with, so this is the group that I automatically get put into. I should also probably note that I get it from everyone: Black and white, young and old, educated and uneducated. It doesn’t matter; to all of them, I am Chinese.

As I walk down the street I here whispers of “China” and “Chinese”. People greet me with “Nihao”. Children have asked me if I know Kung-Fu. On occasion I get the good old “Ching-Chang-Chong” line. My reaction to all of these remarks usually goes one of two ways depending on the situation and my overall mood at the time. Sometimes I just completely ignore it all. I keep on walking like I didn’t hear a thing. People aren’t too persistent here, so they’ll just stop. The other thing I’ll do is stop and talk to the person or people.

I’ll explain that I am not Chinese and that I don’t speak Chinese. I then either tell them that I am from America and end the conversation there or sometimes I tell them that I am Korean, but grew up in America. At times I even say these things in Afrikaans: “Ek is nie Chinese nie. Ek praat nie Chinese nie. Ek is Korean maar ek kom van America af”. (I am not Chinese. I don’t speak Chinese. I am Korean, but I come from America). This always catches them off guard.

Regardless of what I say, the response I usually get is “ohh, ok”. Whether they understand it or not is trivial. On special occasions when the person seems nice and I’m in a good mood, I explain further that Americans are not all white, but in fact can potentially be of any race or ethnicity. Again I get “ohh, ok” as a response, but it makes me feel good that I tried.

More recently, I have tried to be proactive. A teacher from the primary school in town asked me to talk with the 7^th grade class about entrepreneurship. I was more than happy to do this. Here is how I started my presentation:

“Good morning everybody, how are we today?”

           “Good sir, good”

“My name is John, and today I’ll be talking to you all about entrepreneurship, but before we begin raise your hand if you think I am Chinese.” (nearly every hand goes up) “Ok, now raise your hand if you think I am Japanese” (the remaining hands go up) “Ok, guess what? You are all wrong”.

     “Sir, you’re Korean” says one boy from the back

“Yes, that is correct! Thank you! I am not Chinese, not Japanese, I am Korean. Thank you.”

Then I proceeded with my presentation (which went very well), but not before making certain that 106 kids know that I am Korean. Hopefully, they will tell their family and friends and hopefully word will get around, so that maybe overtime people will recognize me as the Korean-American business volunteer instead of just another Chinese guy. With Swakopmund being a large community it will be an upwards battle, but I know that even just a small impact can go a long way.