Excerpt from this article:

http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/SITE/da...0608040038.asp


Despite the problems facing couples from different backgrounds, there has been a dramatic growth in "international marriages" in recent years, especially between Korean men and women from Southeast Asian countries.

The phenomenon makes Koreans realize that the rise in international marriages is not just about numbers. It reflects how the nation is fast becoming a multicultural and multiethnic society and importantly, indicates that accepting ethnic diversity has become inevitable in this society, experts said.

There were 43,121 marriages between Koreans and non-Koreans in 2005, up 21.6 percent from a year earlier. This means 14 out of 100 couples that tied the knot in 2005 were international.

Experts attribute the trend to the increasing number of Korean men in rural farming regions who are taking foreign wives. The male-female ratio in those areas has been declining drastically, so there aren't enough local women to marry.

Four out of every 10 men in rural areas marry non-Korean Asian women. Experts say this will result in around 2 million mixed-race births by 2020.

When I married a Korean in 1961, I was a rare bird, indeed. (Mongolian/Caucasian.) There was a high failure rate then, and still significant opposition to inter-racial marriage in the U.S. Some states still had laws against it, miscegenation laws they were called. We had no problem anywhere we went, other than stares from country people. My wife was, and still is, very attractive. That helped a lot! The U.S. laws were made mainly to discourage Black and White marriages, which still today are frowned upon by most Americans, even though the laws are gone now.
Marriage among Mongolians, like Korean and Filipinos, Vietnamese or Thais shouldn't cause as much grief. The biggest problem should be the language. I know some Koreans are hard-headed at first, but they usually get over it. As long as the farmer's wives can carry a bucket of water, clean house and take care of Mother-in-law as well as the children, she will be fine! A lot of Korean country girls got "citified" and went to college. Those kind are now Westernized sufficiently to want to work outside the home, and wouldn't be worth much to a farmer, who needs a homebody, and sticks to the custom of taking care of his parent(s). Generalizing, of course. Times have changed.

Joe;

You have been married since 1961! WOW! You must have arrived in Korea when the conflict was drawing down. My hat is off to my Hyong Nim

I have been married since 1975 and yes we endured a lot back then. When we were in several rural areas with the military we use to get the feeling of not being wanted. I know our sons caught a great deal of harassment when they were younger. The times have changed and the society has become more global. They is still a long way to go to achieve real racial harmony. The one barrier that really stands in the way in the USA is Affirmative Action.

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Chill

"Tokyo Rose" was a Japanese girl who broadcast on radio during World War ll in Tokyo.
She would be heard by the U.S. Troops on land and sea. She told them to surrender, as the Empire of Japan was winning the war. She said they would be able to return to their loved ones after they surrendered. When that didn't
go as planned, and the Japanese surrendered, She was captured and was imprisoned as a war criminal, in West Virginia. I believe she died there. Oriental people were not popular in the U.S. for many years after that war. Our country had been attacked, just as we were attacked on 9-11. It was understandable, just as it is understandable that after 9-11, Muslims are going to catch hell in the U.S. for a long time to come. Most Americans are angry. Most can't tell a Fundamentalist Muslim from a PortoRican. It is fact that if you look different in any way, you may well be treated with suspicion. If you wear different clothing, speak with an accent, expect that. It is just that way. The world did change again after 9-11. And those who enter inter-racial marriages will be "profiled" as always. Even the farmers in Korea!

As 1/2 Mexican, 1/2 Caucasian (English, German, French) I have rarely experienced any sort of disapproval. My parents felt it in the late 70s, although I would argue that to be betrayed by the character of my Mexican father.... today interracial is widely excepted. There will always be pockets. I was stationed in South Carolina and saw some jacked up crap. My black girlfriend felt uncomfortable around my family because of her own insecurities, but she was welcomed. Her family welcomed me as well.

I would also argue that the US is more ethnically mixed than is protrayed in statistics. I have friends who have a a black parent and white parent who consider themselves, when asked, as being black. That doesn't change the fact that they are mixed. Hispanics are most often than not of mixed ethnicity with Native American, African and Caucasian roots mixed over the years.

As for the article which started this thread, South Korea should embrace more blood from abroad. Why would anyone want to live in a homogenous society... oops there goes the arrogant American.

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JIMMY JOE