Teenage male model Han Hyun-Min\u2019s long legs and powerful strut have made him a rising star on South Korean catwalks, but his agent knew there would be a problem in the ethnically homogeneous country: he is half black.<\/p>\n
Han, 16, has a Nigerian father in a society where racial discrimination is widespread and people of mixed race are commonly referred to as \u201cmongrels\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cA dark-skinned fashion model like Han was unheard of in South Korea, so recruiting him was a big gamble,\u201d said agent Youn Bum.<\/p>\n
Now Han is posing for top glossy magazines as the country\u2019s first black fashion model.<\/p>\n
South Korea has for years sought to foster the image of a modern, sophisticated and tech-savvy nation whose pop culture has made waves across Asia.<\/p>\n
But behind the facade of an economic and cultural powerhouse lies a deeply-rooted racism \u2013 even as its immigrant population creeps up, doubling over the last decade but still only four per cent of the population.<\/p>\n
Most foreigners in the country are from China and Southeast Asia, migrant workers or women who marry rural South Korean men unable to find local spouses willing to live in countryside.<\/p>\n
Discrimination against them is widespread. Many are openly mocked at public transport for being \u201cdirty\u201d or \u201csmelly\u201d, or refused entry to fancy restaurants or public baths.<\/p>\n
A government survey in 2015 showed that 25 per cent of South Koreans do not want a foreigner as a neighbour \u2013 far higher than the 5.6 per cent in the US and China\u2019s 10.5 per cent.<\/p>\n
Mixed-race children are bullied at school and constantly taunted as \u201ctuigi\u201d, a derogatory term that literally means cross-bred animals.<\/p>\n
Many complain of poor opportunities in many aspects of life, including difficulties socialising, getting a job or finding a spouse.<\/p>\n
Han was no exception.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I was playing with other kids at school, some mothers whisked them away from me, saying things like, \u2018Don\u2019t play with a kid like that\u2019,\u201d he told AFP.<\/p>\n
He was regularly stared at in public, with an elderly woman once asking him: \u201cWhat are you doing in someone else\u2019s country?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI wanted to become invisible,\u201d he said. \u201cI hated my looks that stand out from everyone else,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He found his escape in fashion, taking part in modelling auditions and posting his photos on social media until Youn spotted the images.<\/p>\n
After seeing the then 14-year-old demonstrate his \u201celectrifying\u201d stride on a Seoul street for five minutes, Youn signed him up immediately.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing a fashion model helped build my confidence tremendously,\u201d said Han. \u201cNow I enjoy being looked at by other people, instead of being ashamed or embarrassed.\u201d<\/p>\n
He hopes to become a role model for multiracial children. \u201cI want to be more successful, not just for myself but also for people whom I represent.\u201d<\/p>\n
The duo were initially stonewalled by designers and magazine editors, some of whom openly dismissed the dark-skinned model as \u201cbad luck\u201d and urged Youn to recruit whites instead.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome of them told me, \u2018We don\u2019t do dark-skinned models,\u2019 or, \u2018For us, non-Korean models mean white models with blue eyes and blonde hair\u2019,\u201d Youn said.<\/p>\n
But a handful of designers found Han\u2019s look unique and charismatic, and he hit the runways at more than 30 shows at the two Seoul Fashion Weeks after his debut last year \u2013 an unusually high number for a novice.<\/p>\n
Han\u2019s slim physique \u201chad a good combination of strengths of both Asian models and Western models\u201d said designer Cho Young-Jae, who used him to display his men\u2019s clothing line, Chaos From Undermind.<\/p>\n
Neighbouring Japan has a similarly homogeneous population, Cho said, but a longer history of immigration and already has a number of biracial star fashion models.<\/p>\n
Even so, when half-black Ariana Miyamoto was picked as Miss Universe Japan in 2015 she faced open accusations of not being sufficiently Japanese to represent the country, in a stark demonstration of the limits of acceptance.<\/p>\n
South Koreans have until recently been taught at school to take pride in the country\u2019s \u201csingle ethnicity\u201d, with one race and language enduring for centuries.<\/p>\n
A history of repeated invasions by powerful neighbours China and Japan has amplified the sense of victimhood and rampant ethnic nationalism, many analysts say.<\/p>\n
In addition, according to Choi Hang-Sub, sociology professor at Kookmin University in Seoul, Korea\u2019s ultra-competitive culture \u201cworships those with money and power and despises those without\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe rule also applies to foreigners,\u201d he told AFP. \u201cSo white people from advanced nations are welcomed with open arms, and those perceived to have hailed from less developed nations are relentlessly looked down upon.\u201d<\/p>\n
The South has a growing number of foreign or multiracial figures on TV and other public sphere \u2013 but almost all of them are Caucasians, whose looks are favoured by many South Koreans as \u201cbeautiful\u201d.<\/p>\n
Commentators on social media, though, have warmed to Han. \u201cHe has such good aura around him,\u201d said one. \u201cI hope that our society will become more open to people like him.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Teenage male model Han Hyun-Min\u2019s long legs and powerful strut have made him a rising star on South Korean catwalks, but his agent knew there would be a problem in…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":27477,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[197],"tags":[8699,8700,2796,3767],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.citypeopleonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Han-Hyun-min-690x450.jpg?fit=690%2C450&ssl=1","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":133071,"url":"https:\/\/www.citypeopleonline.com\/ex-presidents-obasanjo-jonathan-reunite-in-south-korea\/","url_meta":{"origin":27476,"position":0},"title":"Ex-Presidents Obasanjo, Jonathan Reunite In South Korea","author":"Damilare Salami","date":"February 4, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Former Nigerian Presidents, Goodluck Jonathan and Olusegun Obasanjo on Tuesday met at the World Summit 2020, holding at Seoul, South Korea. Speaking after his meeting with Obasanjo, Jonathan said he was in Seoul to join the discussion on how to maintain world peace. On his Twitter page, Jonathan wrote: \u201dI\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/www.citypeopleonline.com\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Obasanjo, Jonathan, South Korea,","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.citypeopleonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Obasanjo-Jonathan-South-Korea.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.citypeopleonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Obasanjo-Jonathan-South-Korea.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.citypeopleonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Obasanjo-Jonathan-South-Korea.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.citypeopleonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Obasanjo-Jonathan-South-Korea.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.citypeopleonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Obasanjo-Jonathan-South-Korea.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":57371,"url":"https:\/\/www.citypeopleonline.com\/south-korea-to-ban-20000-bmw-vehicles\/","url_meta":{"origin":27476,"position":1},"title":"South Korea To Ban 20,000 BMW Vehicles","author":"Reporter","date":"August 14, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"South Korea Transport Ministry on Tuesday said it would ban some 20,000 BMW vehicles from the streets amid mounting public fears about the engines catching fire. \u00a0 The driving ban comes after 27 engines went up in flames between January and July, which prompted BMW\u2019s Korea unit to apologise on\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/www.citypeopleonline.com\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.citypeopleonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/bmw.jpeg?fit=960%2C540&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.citypeopleonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/bmw.jpeg?fit=960%2C540&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.citypeopleonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/bmw.jpeg?fit=960%2C540&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.citypeopleonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/bmw.jpeg?fit=960%2C540&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":171473,"url":"https:\/\/www.citypeopleonline.com\/top-50-hot-and-sexy-models-who-are-smiling-to-the-bank\/","url_meta":{"origin":27476,"position":2},"title":"Top 50 Hot And Sexy Models Who Are Smiling To The Bank","author":"Iyabo Oyawale","date":"May 13, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"It is commonplace to see and hear about designers, look books and collections; however, little attention is given to the models who bring these designs and ideas to life. 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