[W Forum] The Rights We Live Without Knowing

"Everybody has the right to be different."

On my first day arriving in Berkeley, while taking a walk around the university, I saw this phrase at a deserted bus stop. Below the phrase was a drawing of a single fish painted in various colors, reminding us of the diversity within one life.

How much more diversity must there be in a single human, a village, a community, a society, a country, and this world? Each of us has the right to think differently and exist differently, but we often forget this and are forced to become the same. We all have the right to exist differently.

Just before the spring semester began, I met a group of young students on the quiet university campus. They were taking selfies from flattering angles. Unexpectedly, I heard familiar Korean words. "Wearing a Harvard University shirt and taking pictures at Berkeley University. Hahaha!" Leaving behind their giggles, I prayed that their young dreams would mature well. I encountered such groups of students on field trips almost every day. It was a moment that made me realize the intense educational zeal of our country.

Sure enough, according to school officials, even at Berkeley University, Korean international students are the third largest group after Chinese and German students. It is a new responsibility to consider not just prestigious universities as shortcuts to success but also what and how one learns within them.

Posters practicing the right to speak up are frequently seen around the school. There are messages emphasizing the importance of environmental issues, warnings against discrimination, hatred, and prejudice based on race and gender, often posted on house windows. Outside the school office window hangs a sign saying "Resist." Instead of ordinary school banners on campus streetlights, there is a banner stating, "3 out of 5 Berkeley members raise their voices on gender issues." Facing this banner, you might pause to consider whether you are one of those 3 or 2.

Invited to a cultural event hosted by immigrant communities, I found that while it is important to share the history and culture of ethnic immigrant communities such as Korean, Chinese, Filipino, and Russian, sharp and painful questions arise about how to embrace those so marginalized that they cannot form communities, and whether there are policy alternatives. Questioning correct values, acting according to one’s beliefs, expressing opinions, and raising voices are naturally learned and shared cultural practices in daily life. Coincidentally, the first place I met the professor who invited me was the "Free Speech Movement Cafe" on campus. Visitors to that cafe are reminded daily of how hard the fight for freedom of the press and expression has been.

Names, words, and language collectively define a society. Although obvious, the rights we live with unknowingly were made possible through the tearful sacrifices of countless individuals. In our society, where humility is a pronounced virtue, there is still a culture of pointing fingers at individuals who raise their voices with awareness of issues, calling them eccentric.

However, even now, passionate struggles are underway to create and protect values reflecting countless differences. All these movements are meaningful. The work of honoring all these struggles must proceed simultaneously. Walking down Martin Luther King Street, I hope that streets named after Kim Gu and Yu Gwan-sun will appear in Seoul as well. History repeats progress and setbacks everywhere, but I expect that the courage and will to raise voices will come together to create a better today than yesterday.

Jeong Eun-gwi, Professor at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies