As for middle-class Koreans' awareness of homosexuality, I think it is safe to say that a lot of them have long known that some men have sex with other men. However, it was something that happens only in places like U.S., where people do all sorts of unimaginable things in the pursuit of pleasure. Even when instances of homosexuality in Korea surfaced, they were quickly discounted as bad influences from the West.

The situation is quite different now. Ever since the Korean gay rights movement came into existence in the early nineties, the gay presence in Korea has become strikingly perceivable. Although the gay issue has yet to make its way into primetime news shows, TV shows similar to '60 Minutes' dedicated half a dozen episodes to it over the years. At the beginning, it was a mere sensationalization of homosexuals; but the tones are rapidly changing.

This rather abrupt change seems to owe a lot to the fact that homosexuality ceased to be an idea without a human face when some brave students at Yonsei and Seoul National Universities outed themselves in mid-nineties. Their being students at two most prestigious colleges in Korea seemed to have made their coming out particularly efficacious because it directly contradicted the mistaken belief that homosexuals occupy the bottom rung of society. This ostensive contradiction seemed to have motivated people in the media to learn more about homosexuality and see it in a favorable light whenever possible.

The media attention to homosexuality has reached its peak in October 1999 when the gay students' group at Seoul National University has become the first officially recognized college-based gay group in Korea. Given the importance SNU has in the eyes of Korean people, nearly all the major news media covered the issue. (The tones ranged from favorable to neutral.) A few days later, one of the most famous dancer/choreographer was found guilty of forcing one of his students to engage in homosexual sex. (Since Korea does not have sodomy laws, he was indicted under the charge of sexual assault.) A TV show depicting the daily lives of some gay men and lesbians who were courageous enough to reveal their identity followed this unfortunate occasion. In this regard, at least those who read newspapers and/or watch TV news shows must know that Korea has its own share of gays.

Unfortunately, the misconceptions that homosexuality is only about sex, that it is something that you "fall into," that it is only a "phase" which you'll eventually outgrow are still prevalent. Quite a few silly "theories" of homosexuality are around, too. A lot of people still confuse it with transgenderedness; some people associate it with the recent sexual liberation taking place in Korea; some suggest that it reflects the breakdown of the traditional family; some even suggest that environmental pollution is to be blamed. However, albeit very gradually, people are beginning to realize that homosexuality is a form of love and sexuality that has been with the humanity for thousands of years, if not more.

Violence against gays is rare not necessarily because Korea is a tolerant society but simply because you don't see gay people around you. This invisibility has partly to do with the fact that Korea is such a touchy-feely society. That is, women can walk hand-in-hand (or arm-in-arm) in the streets without inviting any suspicion whatsoever. While men do not enjoy that much luxury, it is perfectly okay to walk with an arm over another's shoulder; when you're drunk, it is even okay to walk hand-in-hand. (But things are slowly changing. For example, two men walking hand-in-hand *could* be now considered as signifying homosexuality. Also, some schools have decided to go so far as to place a ban on overt, yet innocent display of intimacy between the members of same sex.) "Passing" is extremely easy because no definite set of characteristics is associated with homosexuality. In this regard, unless you're caught red-handed, virtually no-one will suspect your sexual orientation based on your appearance and/or mannerisms. While this may sound too good to be true, it has the undesirable side effect of deterring people from coming out. Given that few gays bother to reveal their sexual orientation to their parents, seeing gay people kicked out of their homes is rare. This is not to say that such tragic instances are non-existent, however. Verbal abuse is quite common in the cyberworld and, in the real world, other forms of threats such as blackmailing have become quite prominent.

The following are two of the common ways Koreans justify their anti-gay attitudes: (1) that homosexuality is unnatural and (2) that it is against the Bible. Quite often, the former rationale is based on the ideas of yin and yang. I've never heard anyone citing Buddhist doctrines to condemn homosexuality (because there's none to my knowledge) but you do hear people citing the Bible quite often. With the exception of some minor incidents, the Christian sector has yet to come up with a coherent anti-gay agenda. But we expect that the resistance will increase as gays become more and more visible.

Avenues available for Korean gays are quite diverse. The gay subculture has been around for decades and is booming. It used to be the case that the only places you could come in contact with other gays were gay theaters, gay bars, bathhouses, and other cruising areas. But the Korean gay community now enjoys the luxury of having the options of joining gay rights organizations, visiting gay bars (that are no longer located in the back alleys), and getting online and become a part of the burgeoning online gay community. You can get AIDS/HIV-related information either online or through one of the gay rights organizations. While some government-funded organizations are dedicated to the AIDS issue, some of them are blatantly homophobic.

It is rather hard to characterize the Korean government's attitude toward homosexuality. One thing we know for sure is that there is no overt discrimination against gays: no sodomy laws, no anti-gay regulations, no nothing. However, this absence only testifies how invisible the gay presence has been in Korea. Naturally, homophobia raises its ugly head in unexpected places. For example, Wong Kar-Wai's 'Happy Together' and Seoul Queer Film Festival had to wait a year because the government initially banned them. (The rationale: they were against "the Korean sentiment" (whatever that is) and "harmful to the youth.") In the print media, the queer magazine 'Buddy' and the lesbian book 'A Different World', two officially registered queer publications, have had constant conflicts with the government, which is so concerned about "protecting" the youth from being exposed to such "obscene materials."

Gays in the military has never become an issue but some people testify that they had some difficulties when they revealed their sexuality. Some even say that homosexual acts, when caught, could be extremely detrimental to your military career and could lead to persecution. As for the police, they do know which bars cater the gay clientele, but bar raids are rare, if any. This is not to say that the Korean police are completely neutral about homosexuality. Owners of Korean gay bars testify that they have to be extremely careful about governmental regulations because a single violation could result in devastating consequences.

Korea is now beginning to come to grips with the fact that gays are their neighbors, children, and co-workers. This awareness may result in more formal forms of oppression in the future. At present, the burden comes more from Korea's traditional values such as the beliefs that one has to carry on one's family name and that one has to get married if one is to lead a wholesome life. (This is not to say that they are the sole bases of homophobia in Korea, of course.) When combined with some of the characteristics of Koreans, namely, the willingness to sacrifice themselves for the benefit of others (esp. parents) and the capability to withstand extreme oppression, these beliefs tend to discourage gay people from coming forward and do something to make this world a better place.