SEOUL — Pittsburgh Steeler wide receiver Hines Ward is on a triumphant 10-day tour of South Korea with his Korean mother in a blaze of publicity extolling his success in American sports but also raising questions about Korean racism.
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Pittsburgh Steelers receiver Hines Ward speaks with the hosts of a talkshow of a local television station MBC during a visit to Seoul on April 4.
Reuters/MBC
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Ward’s return raised questions about the status of children of mixed-blood, especially those with an Afro-American parent. Although Koreans with mixed blood — white or black — have occasionally had success as singers, musicians or athletes, not one has gained stature in a university, at a company or in the government.
Ward, though, is being treated like the prodigal son, home at last, as he goes off on a whirlwind schedule highlighted by a dinner with President Roh Moo-Hyun and the president’s wife in the Blue House and honorary citizenship of Seoul. He’s even visiting the hospital where he was born, the Ewha University Medical Center.
About 100 of Ward’s Korean fans dubbed their airport welcome “Promise to Mother.” Ward hopes to devote most of his time here to private visits, always accompanied by his mother and relatives.
Koreans everywhere, though, wonder about the degree of their ethnocentrism — a concern never far below the surface. The high school graduation rate of mixed-blood Koreans is far lower than the national average and most of them never make it through or even to college.
Koreans admit in private conversation that they feel uneasy about the presence of people of mixed blood. But many wonder whether those sensitivities are justified, let alone moral and ethical. Many people, when asked, avoid the question, saying they have never actually seen a mixed-blood person except possibly for a singer or two on television.
Every night this week, Koreans are getting lessons in American football, which is not played here on any serious competitive level, as they follow footage of Ward scoring touchdowns in crucial games. Munhwa Broadcasting Co., one of the three TV networks, is airing a feature on his life, “With Super Bowl Hero Hines Ward,” and promised to interview him on one of its main newscasts.
The U.S. Embassy, pleased with the public relations value of Ward’s visit, hosts him on Thursday at a welcoming party. There he will meet the most valuable player in a local amateur league that plays American football, not to be confused with football as in soccer, a popular national sport here.
Some Koreans, serving as translators and fixers with U.S. forces under the KATUSA — Korean Augmentees to the U.S. Army — have picked up the game of football while on U.S. installations. One of them said he hoped Ward’s visit would gain acceptance not only for Afro-American-Korean youngsters but also win general acceptance for American football.
For Ward, though, the first of those challenges is what counts. He said that he hoped his presence here would make inroads against deep-seated prejudices.
A measure of Ward’s concerns is that he came here without his wife and his son, whom he did want to expose to a media blitz, but promised to bring on his next trip. Ward, meanwhile, was busy soaking up Korean culture. He will get somewhat closer to it when he presents gifts and poses for photographs Saturday with 100 children at Seoul’s Olympic Park.
Ward, who starred in baseball in high school, will also throw the first ball in the season opener between Doosan and LG baseball teams in nearby Chamshil Stadium.
