I lost my wallet a month ago and got it back in a day. Thanks to someone who was grateful, it was well kept at the Jungbu Police Station. As soon as I found my wallet, I lifted my credit card loss report. It was lunchtime, so I went to a gimbap restaurant near Hoehyeon Station. When I ordered tteokbokki from the kiosk and tried to pay with my card, a warning message appeared on the screen, saying, "I will not be held responsible for the use of stolen cards." Maybe it hasn't been canceled yet, I ordered it with a card that I didn't lose, but the same phrase was repeated. It was difficult to understand, but I completed the payment with another card. However, when I sat down and looked at my cell phone, I found that payment was made with two cards that had previously been stolen. I suddenly couldn't eat 3 servings of tteokbokki, so I asked the employee to cancel 2 of them. But speaking to the kitchen staff in Chinese, he said in his poor Korean pronunciation, "I'm making it. No cancellation," he replied. He wrote about the loss and release of the card, but he didn't seem to understand it properly. I held him busy carrying food and gave up my refund because I couldn't keep complaining.

When I took to the streets with two servings of hot tteokbokki in the heat, my anger soared and soon became sad. I can't communicate in my country's Korean sign restaurant.... I felt like a foreigner. The problem is that such stores are increasing near Hoehyeon Station and Myeong-dong, where tourists flock. Since orders and payments are made through kiosks, only foreign workers work without Korean owners.

You don't just become a stranger in Seoul's tourist attractions. An acquaintance who works as a safety manager for a construction company had a similar experience at a hospital in Guro. The health examination items were strange, so I asked the receptionist, and he was surprised to suddenly talk to nurses and doctors in Chinese. The company designated a hospital with Chinese medical staff because there were many Chinese workers working at construction sites. An acquaintance said, "The majority of foreigners working at construction sites in the metropolitan area are Chinese. When they talk in Chinese, they feel alienated," he said.

In the era of 1.1 million foreign workers, this feeling may be natural. I'm grateful for them working in jobs that Koreans avoid, but I'm also frustrated that they can't communicate. It makes them uncomfortable, but it also makes them feel guilty. They blame themselves for not being able to embrace strangers with a more warm gaze. Most people endure these situations with patience, but exceeding the threshold can lead to conflict and conflict. In the university district, anti-China sentiment was created due to antipathy toward Chinese students who are not good at Korean and are free on group projects. Beyond anti-China, it has also spread to groundless conspiracy theories such as rumors of fraudulent election interference and espionage.

As animosity and prejudice combine, discrimination against Chinese people also occurs. Not only is it difficult to rent a house because of the preconceived notion that "Chinese people are noisy and messy," but they also have to find a house for rent that is more expensive than the market price. Chinese students who are fascinated by K-pop and K-dramas and come to study feel a severe sense of betrayal.

Looking back, it is no different from the discrimination Koreans received when they settled in the United States, Europe, or Japan. As our national power grows, we forget the sadness we received and are hurting foreigners the same way. The United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada, which have long had migrant problems, have enacted anti-racism laws to find a solution to coexistence. It is said that the Korean government has also begun reviewing overseas legislation to enact a comprehensive anti-discrimination law.

However, it is difficult to avoid conflicts caused by differences in language barriers and customs even if discrimination is prohibited. Conflicts have also occurred in foreign countries where anti-discrimination laws exist. In the end, individual self-purification efforts have no choice but to balance society. Until a culture that takes diversity for granted and tolerates inconvenience takes root.

[Director of Opinion, Jun Jihyun]