China
A person of African descent traveling to China should not be surprised if they are repeatedly stared at or even swarmed by crowds of curious Chinese who will treat them as a spectacle by taking pictures, touching their hair, rubbing their skin, and asking questions that reflect their ignorance and lack of interaction with Black people.
Racism against Blacks may be the strongest form of prejudice in China. Chinese racism is linked to ignorance, class divisions, ethnocentrism and colorism that exists within Chinese society. Many people in China look down upon other Chinese of darker skin, and believe the whiter skin has more beauty.
In China, Black people are viewed through stereotypes, and most Chinese assume Blacks are poor, uneducated, violent, play basketball, are barbaric and wild, and even eat each other. The most common Chinese slur used against Black people means “black ghost.”
South Korea
Racist mockery of Black people is very common in the public sphere in South Korea. When a Black person turns on the television in Korea, they can expect to experience Koreans using blackface and other stereotypical depictions to mock African people, the Diaspora, and Black culture in general.
Tourists can also anticipate being mistreated because of skin color or ethnicity. Foreigners say although many Koreans are polite and respectful, it’s not unusual to experience an angry, public xenophobic outburst from some of Korea’s citizens and taxi drivers, who they say overlook them in favor of picking up Koreans. A number of visitors have also reported locals shifting uneasily away from them on public transportation.
Some Koreans and visitors explain the racism against Black people as stemming from a fear of the unknown, since the country has historically been one of the most ethnically homogeneous nations in the world. Some Koreans will go their entire lives and never see a Black person. Others say Koreans, over time, have adopted whites’ attitudes towards Blacks.
