Making moral and economic inferior others: Everyday racialization of Asian migrants in South Korea

Abstract

Recent studies have explored racialization among groups with subtle or no phenotypical differences; however, a crucial connection to racial capitalism remains unexplored. This article investigates the everyday racialization of migrants in Wongok-dong, a multicultural neighbourhood in South Korea, using narratives gathered from research participants through interviews, participant observations, and group discussions. Specifically, the study examines how Asian migrants, including ethnic Korean return migrants, are racialized attached to negative meanings such as fly-tipping, backward, and poor in host Korean residents’ narratives. Furthermore, the study scrutinizes the influence of the hierarchical worldview of ‘seonjinguk’ (developed/advanced country) and ‘hujinguk’ (underdeveloped/backward country) on the host Korean residents’ perceptions, reinforcing the Korean residents’ feeling of superiority over Asian migrants. In analyzing the Koreans’ narratives within the broader political-economic context of Asian labour migration, the author argues that Asian migrants are viewed as morally and economically inferior by the host Koreans in everyday discourse. By linking Asian labour migration as a facet of racial capitalism and developmental worldview and ordinary people’s perceptions of Asian migrants in Korea, this research deepens our understanding of racialization ‘beyond colour and the West’ and its ties to the broader discursive and political economic system.