Baekjeong
Encyclopedia
The baekjeong were an “untouchable
” outcaste group of Korea
, often compared with the burakumin
of Japan
and the dalit
s of India
and Nepal
.
in mid-thirteenth century, the outcasts in Korea, called the gorisuchae, were divided very lightly into two camps: (1) the hwachae or suchae, who hunted and butchered, and were seen as crude; and (2) the jaein (재인 才人), who were principally actors, entertainers, minstrels, prostitutes, and so on, and were sometimes described as “frivolous.” Near the end of the Goryeo
era the term hwachae-suchae replaced gorisuchae to refer to the outcasts.
The term baekjeong itself means “common people.” In the early part of the Goryeo
period (918 - 1392), the outcast groups were largely settled in fixed communities. However the Mongol invasion left Korea in disarray and anomie
, and these groups began to become nomadic.
The latest theory in Korea is that the baekjeong were the surrendered Khitans from the Third Goryeo-Khitan War
. Following the decisive defeat of the Khitans by General Gang Gamchan, the surrendered Khitan tribesmen were scattered throughout Goryeo in isolated villages to keep them from rebelling en masse. As the Khitan
Liao dynasty fell to the Jurchens
in Manchuria, the Khitans had no where to return to, and were slowly absorbed by the Koreans in the following centuries. Befitting their nomadic origin, the Baekjeong Khitans were prized for their skills in hunting, butchering, skinning, and leather tanning. Over time, they became the meat and skin working underclass of Korea. They also brought dog eating to the peninsula, which is a nomadic staple, spreading dog eating to other members of the Korean underclass. Following the Mongol invasion a century later, Koreans looked at the Baekjeong as potential fifth column allies of the Mongols, and mistreated them. This became institutionalized following the ousting of the last Mongol contingents from Goryeo under King Gongmin. By the beginning to Joseon Dynasty, the Baekgeong had solidified as the lowest class among Koreans.
Although they did not strictly obey Buddhist
prohibitions, the Koreans did not eat a great deal of meat until the arrival of the Mongols. The nomadic Baekjeong brought horses and cattle with them to the peninsula
to satisfy their desires for meat, and, being expert butchers, both slaughtered animals themselves and trained other outcasts in the practice.
In the early part of the Joseon Dynasty
, King Sejong
had attempted to assimilate the outcaste groups, who had been engaging in banditry. He ordered that they be registered, settled into fixed communities, made to work in agriculture, and even ordering their intermarriage with other commoners. However, this policy was a failure, in no small part because the outcasts themselves refused to cooperate with the authorities, having little interest in farming and agriculture, and instead continued to thieve cattle and operate as nomads. By the 15th century, attempts to assimilate the outcasts were abandoned, and the outcastes were forced into fixed ghetto
s on the outskirts of towns and villages. The baekjeong were not given free rein over their own ghettos, and as the population increased, they were not generally allotted any more land, resulting in overcrowding. The communities themselves were largely autonomous, with strong internal organization and solidarity. In all but the most serious crimes, order was maintained from within. Although they were not registered citizens and had no civil rights
, this worked to their advantage in several ways; they were excused from military service
, compulsory labor, and paying tax
es. Most importantly, the baekjeong had a monopoly over their special occupations, with both social control and strong resistance preventing others from entering their fields of work.
The jaein continued to exist as one variety of baekjeong; the other were those formerly called the hwachae, but now simply the baekjeong proper. While the jaein continued to remain nomadic to some degree, the baekjeong had become largely settled into segregated ghettos. The primary occupations reserved for them were basketry, butcher
ing, leatherworking, and straw sandal making. Although these positions were considered the most polluted
and degrading, they were “not merely an imposition; they were also a privileged monopoly.” When in the twentieth century others began taking up these occupations for themselves, the baekjeong protested, seeing their control over these enterprises as an exclusive right.
Throughout much of the Joseon Dynasty, they were also forced to serve as executioner
s. The baekjeong found this task deplorable, and often assigned the job to the most wretched of their people, sometimes those bordering on psychological illness. They were also assigned to be dogcatchers and to kill feral dogs, even as late as the twentieth century. The Hyeongpyeongsa later worked towards ending this imposition, believing that it created a very negative impression among the common people regarding the baekjeong. Essentially, then, the group was assigned to the most demeaning tasks in Korean society. They were also considered in moral violation of Buddhist principles, which led Koreans to see work involving meat as polluting and sinful, even if they saw the consumption as acceptable. This is clearly demonstrated by an ordinance in 968 CE, which prohibited the slaughter of cattle but also explicitly allowed for the continued sale and consumption of meat. The baekjeong themselves appear to have considered butchering a polluted act, and often ceased slaughtering for three years after the death of a parent.
in Korean society
. The baekjeong were seen as a contemptible and polluted people that others feared and avoided meeting. When higher classes did come in contact with the outcastes, they put them in a position of clear subservience. For instance, meeting yangban
along the road, they were expected to bow and use language honoring them duly, even to children of yangban. They could also be ordered to show respect or go on errands by yangban, even their children. When conducting business with higher orders they had to do so from the entrance to the garden, as even the veranda was off limits to them. Restrictions on how the baekjeong could compose themselves served to mark their lower status. Such sumptuary laws were numerous, and included forbidding the use of ornamental hairpins by women, and requiring that sandal
s be made of straw
rather than leather
. The extent to which they were seen as a polluted people is well-illustrated in the fact that their bodies were kept in separate graveyard
s so as not to mingle with those of the yangmin dead.
Near the end of the Joseon Dynasty, a mutual aid organization for the baekjeong was established called Sŭngdong Toga (승동도가, 承洞都家), with representatives from various communities. The organization was involved in taking actions, coordinating improvements, and acting at times as the official representative of the baekjeong in legal matters. As a result of the Kabo Reform in 1894, the group disbanded, seeing its purpose as having been served. However, this legal equality did not equate to social equality. Many remained segregated from society at large, and conditions worsened in some respects. Although still largely limited to their traditional occupations, modified regulations in 1896 allowed non-baekjeong to become licensed butchers, eventually leading to meat businesses which have pressured many out of one of the few tasks allowed them.
. Of particular importance was the growth of certain religions supportive of change. Tonghak, a Korean nationalist
religion, wished to end unfair sinbun conventions, and Tonghak peasants had staged an uprising in 1894 in favor of human rights, especially for those low on the social ladder. They also demanded that the baekjeong no longer be forced to wear discriminatory hats and widows be allowed to remarry. Although this uprising was ultimately unsuccessful, it was an important impetus behind the Kabo Reform, and helped to abolish the sinbun structure that had restricted some groups legally. However, the baekjeong had benefited much less from these changes than other groups, such as the slaves.
The other major religious influence on human rights came through Christianity. Some missionaries
had success converting baekjeong to Christianity
, emphasizing that everyone has equal rights under God
. However, everyone was not equal under the Christian congregation, and protests erupted when missionaries attempted to integrate them into worship services, with non-baekjeong finding such an attempt insensitive to traditional notions of hierarchical advantage. Thus, both Tonghak and Christianity helped to expose the baekjeong, and Koreans more generally, to ideas regarding egalitarianism and social equality. Parallel to and supportive of the rise of these liberal ideas were transitions occurring in Korean society as a whole, particularly with regard to social classes.
to wear the same clothes and hats as other people. When others in the north refused to wear the humiliating garb traditionally expected of them and were jailed, an effort was made to release them. Growing industrialism in Korea began to erode baekjeong dominance over certain occupations, particularly as Japanese began to control slaughterhouses and exploit them as employees.
However, as some baekjeong fell into financial despair, the loosening of segregation led others to profit from changes, giving them the ability to fund efforts for change. Beyond financial resources, organization was also strengthened due to the longstanding connections created through segregation and close-knit social networks. Between these human and financial resources, an emphasis on progressive models, and feelings of social deprivation and discrimination, the conditions were ripe for the baekjeong to mobilize for change. One of the earliest of these movements was in 1910 when Chang Chip'il, later an influential member of the Hyeongpyeongsa, attempted unsuccessfully to establish a trade union for butchers. In 1921 the Jipseong Johap was established by Korean and Japanese entrepreneurs, attempting to provide poverty assistance for butchers. However, this effort for improvement of economic conditions was soon overshadowed by an organization with broader goals.
The Hyeongpyeongsa was launched in Jinju on 23 April 1923 through the alliance of wealthy or educated baekjeong and non-baekjeong proponents of change, advocating for “the abolition of classes and of contemptuous appellations, the enlightenment of members, and the promotion of mutual friendship among members.” It advocated both for individual civil rights as well as communal fellowship, recognizing that the group must maintain its identity under the strain of changes such as urbanization
and industrialization which threatened to atomize the community. Thus, the Hyŏngp'yŏngsa pursued both an equality of human rights and the right to assimilate into the broader public, even as it worked to forge a common identity.
More importantly, they focused on social and economic injustices affecting the baekjeong, hoping to create an egalitarian
Korean society. Their efforts included attacking social discrimination by the upper class, authorities, and “commoners” and the use of degrading language against children in public schools. Power within the organization shifted several times, including the shift in 1925 from the original Chinju faction advocating educational reform to a group of Seoul intellectuals more interested in economic reforms based around traditional occupations. In 1927 a number of members of the Hyŏngp'yŏngsa were arrested for their involvement in the creation of an underground nationalist organization. Their absence was partially responsible for the organization's shift to the socialist left in the late 1920s.
The growing power of the radical wing divided the movement, and much of the economic support provided by wealthier baekjeong was pulled, particularly under the strain of the Great Depression
, which had negatively impacted the meat and leather trades. The young socialists in the Hyŏngp'yŏngsa forged connections with other movements, attempting to broaden the movement and work towards “the reconstitution of Korea as a whole.”
At the 1931 national conference, they stirred controversy within the movement by introducing a dissolution proposal, feeling that the organization had abandoned its original aims in favor of those of the bourgeois intellectual
s directing it. It was their belief that dissolution would better serve their interests as it was replaced by trade union
s. The dissolution proposal failed, but not without further alienating more conservative members of the movement, who would already financially strapped from broader economic conditions in Korea. Even more fatal for the movement was the arrest of a number of young radical members, who were accused of establishing a secret communist organization, the “Hyŏngp'yŏngsa Youth Vanguard”, which authorities said demanded struggle against feudalism and the abolishment of private property. The trial related to this accusation dragged on for four years, before the defendants were found to be innocent. It appears likely that the “organization” was a construction by Japanese authorities to ensure the labor wing of the Hyŏngp'yŏngsa would not interfere with their access to leather
needed for the invasion of China
. As a result, the Hyeongpyeongsa shifted to the right, abandoning progressive ideals and finally disbanding in 1935, claiming the movement's aims had successfully been met.
Going through the colonial period
and the Korean War
, Korean society changed enormously. Traditional Korean values were gradually loosened, and with those social changes, the traditional caste system also began to be loosened. Today in Korea, the system has completely disappeared. Although the term 'baekjeong' is still used, it's usually considered to be a historical term, little-used in daily life.
Untouchability
Untouchability is the social practice of ostracizing a minority group by segregating them from the mainstream by social custom or legal mandate. The excluded group could be one that did not accept the norms of the excluding group and historically included foreigners, nomadic tribes, law-breakers...
” outcaste group of Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
, often compared with the burakumin
Burakumin
are a Japanese social minority group. The burakumin are one of the main minority groups in Japan, along with the Ainu of Hokkaidō, the Ryukyuans of Okinawa and Japanese residents of Korean and Chinese descent....
of Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and the dalit
Dalit
Dalit is a designation for a group of people traditionally regarded as Untouchable. Dalits are a mixed population, consisting of numerous castes from all over South Asia; they speak a variety of languages and practice a multitude of religions...
s of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
.
Social history
Before the Mongol invasionsMongol invasions of Korea
The Mongol invasions of Korea consisted of a series of campaigns by the Mongol Empire against Korea, then known as Goryeo, from 1231 to 1270...
in mid-thirteenth century, the outcasts in Korea, called the gorisuchae, were divided very lightly into two camps: (1) the hwachae or suchae, who hunted and butchered, and were seen as crude; and (2) the jaein (재인 才人), who were principally actors, entertainers, minstrels, prostitutes, and so on, and were sometimes described as “frivolous.” Near the end of the Goryeo
Goryeo
The Goryeo Dynasty or Koryŏ was a Korean dynasty established in 918 by Emperor Taejo. Korea gets its name from this kingdom which came to be pronounced Korea. It united the Later Three Kingdoms in 936 and ruled most of the Korean peninsula until it was removed by the Joseon dynasty in 1392...
era the term hwachae-suchae replaced gorisuchae to refer to the outcasts.
The term baekjeong itself means “common people.” In the early part of the Goryeo
Goryeo
The Goryeo Dynasty or Koryŏ was a Korean dynasty established in 918 by Emperor Taejo. Korea gets its name from this kingdom which came to be pronounced Korea. It united the Later Three Kingdoms in 936 and ruled most of the Korean peninsula until it was removed by the Joseon dynasty in 1392...
period (918 - 1392), the outcast groups were largely settled in fixed communities. However the Mongol invasion left Korea in disarray and anomie
Anomie
Anomie is a term meaning "without Law" to describe a lack of social norms; "normlessness". It describes the breakdown of social bonds between an individual and their community ties, with fragmentation of social identity and rejection of self-regulatory values. It was popularized by French...
, and these groups began to become nomadic.
The latest theory in Korea is that the baekjeong were the surrendered Khitans from the Third Goryeo-Khitan War
Third Goryeo-Khitan War
The Third Goryeo–Khitan War was an 11th-century conflict between the kingdom of Goryeo and Khitan forces near what is now the border between China and North Korea...
. Following the decisive defeat of the Khitans by General Gang Gamchan, the surrendered Khitan tribesmen were scattered throughout Goryeo in isolated villages to keep them from rebelling en masse. As the Khitan
Khitan
The history of the Khitans dates back to the 4th century AD. The Khitan people dominated much of Mongolia and modern Manchuria by the 10th century, under the Liao Dynasty, and eventually collapsed by 1125 ....
Liao dynasty fell to the Jurchens
Jurchens
The Jurchens were a Tungusic people who inhabited the region of Manchuria until the 17th century, when they adopted the name Manchu...
in Manchuria, the Khitans had no where to return to, and were slowly absorbed by the Koreans in the following centuries. Befitting their nomadic origin, the Baekjeong Khitans were prized for their skills in hunting, butchering, skinning, and leather tanning. Over time, they became the meat and skin working underclass of Korea. They also brought dog eating to the peninsula, which is a nomadic staple, spreading dog eating to other members of the Korean underclass. Following the Mongol invasion a century later, Koreans looked at the Baekjeong as potential fifth column allies of the Mongols, and mistreated them. This became institutionalized following the ousting of the last Mongol contingents from Goryeo under King Gongmin. By the beginning to Joseon Dynasty, the Baekgeong had solidified as the lowest class among Koreans.
Although they did not strictly obey Buddhist
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
prohibitions, the Koreans did not eat a great deal of meat until the arrival of the Mongols. The nomadic Baekjeong brought horses and cattle with them to the peninsula
Korean Peninsula
The Korean Peninsula is a peninsula in East Asia. It extends southwards for about 684 miles from continental Asia into the Pacific Ocean and is surrounded by the Sea of Japan to the south, and the Yellow Sea to the west, the Korea Strait connecting the first two bodies of water.Until the end of...
to satisfy their desires for meat, and, being expert butchers, both slaughtered animals themselves and trained other outcasts in the practice.
In the early part of the Joseon Dynasty
Joseon Dynasty
Joseon , was a Korean state founded by Taejo Yi Seong-gye that lasted for approximately five centuries. It was founded in the aftermath of the overthrow of the Goryeo at what is today the city of Kaesong. Early on, Korea was retitled and the capital was relocated to modern-day Seoul...
, King Sejong
Sejong the Great of Joseon
Sejong the Great was the fourth king of the Joseon Dynasty of Korea. During his regency, he reinforced Korean Confucian policies and executed major legal amendments . He also used the creation of Hangul and the advancement of technology to expand his territory...
had attempted to assimilate the outcaste groups, who had been engaging in banditry. He ordered that they be registered, settled into fixed communities, made to work in agriculture, and even ordering their intermarriage with other commoners. However, this policy was a failure, in no small part because the outcasts themselves refused to cooperate with the authorities, having little interest in farming and agriculture, and instead continued to thieve cattle and operate as nomads. By the 15th century, attempts to assimilate the outcasts were abandoned, and the outcastes were forced into fixed ghetto
Ghetto
A ghetto is a section of a city predominantly occupied by a group who live there, especially because of social, economic, or legal issues.The term was originally used in Venice to describe the area where Jews were compelled to live. The term now refers to an overcrowded urban area often associated...
s on the outskirts of towns and villages. The baekjeong were not given free rein over their own ghettos, and as the population increased, they were not generally allotted any more land, resulting in overcrowding. The communities themselves were largely autonomous, with strong internal organization and solidarity. In all but the most serious crimes, order was maintained from within. Although they were not registered citizens and had no civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
, this worked to their advantage in several ways; they were excused from military service
Military service
Military service, in its simplest sense, is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, whether as a chosen job or as a result of an involuntary draft . Some nations require a specific amount of military service from every citizen...
, compulsory labor, and paying tax
Tax
To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...
es. Most importantly, the baekjeong had a monopoly over their special occupations, with both social control and strong resistance preventing others from entering their fields of work.
The jaein continued to exist as one variety of baekjeong; the other were those formerly called the hwachae, but now simply the baekjeong proper. While the jaein continued to remain nomadic to some degree, the baekjeong had become largely settled into segregated ghettos. The primary occupations reserved for them were basketry, butcher
Butcher
A butcher is a person who may slaughter animals, dress their flesh, sell their meat or any combination of these three tasks. They may prepare standard cuts of meat, poultry, fish and shellfish for sale in retail or wholesale food establishments...
ing, leatherworking, and straw sandal making. Although these positions were considered the most polluted
Pollution
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into a natural environment that causes instability, disorder, harm or discomfort to the ecosystem i.e. physical systems or living organisms. Pollution can take the form of chemical substances or energy, such as noise, heat or light...
and degrading, they were “not merely an imposition; they were also a privileged monopoly.” When in the twentieth century others began taking up these occupations for themselves, the baekjeong protested, seeing their control over these enterprises as an exclusive right.
Throughout much of the Joseon Dynasty, they were also forced to serve as executioner
Executioner
A judicial executioner is a person who carries out a death sentence ordered by the state or other legal authority, which was known in feudal terminology as high justice.-Scope and job:...
s. The baekjeong found this task deplorable, and often assigned the job to the most wretched of their people, sometimes those bordering on psychological illness. They were also assigned to be dogcatchers and to kill feral dogs, even as late as the twentieth century. The Hyeongpyeongsa later worked towards ending this imposition, believing that it created a very negative impression among the common people regarding the baekjeong. Essentially, then, the group was assigned to the most demeaning tasks in Korean society. They were also considered in moral violation of Buddhist principles, which led Koreans to see work involving meat as polluting and sinful, even if they saw the consumption as acceptable. This is clearly demonstrated by an ordinance in 968 CE, which prohibited the slaughter of cattle but also explicitly allowed for the continued sale and consumption of meat. The baekjeong themselves appear to have considered butchering a polluted act, and often ceased slaughtering for three years after the death of a parent.
Discrimination
The group had long suffered severe social discriminationDiscrimination
Discrimination is the prejudicial treatment of an individual based on their membership in a certain group or category. It involves the actual behaviors towards groups such as excluding or restricting members of one group from opportunities that are available to another group. The term began to be...
in Korean society
Culture of Korea
The current political separation of North and South Korea has resulted in divergence in modern Korean cultures; nevertheless, the traditional culture of Korea is historically shared by both states.-Dance:...
. The baekjeong were seen as a contemptible and polluted people that others feared and avoided meeting. When higher classes did come in contact with the outcastes, they put them in a position of clear subservience. For instance, meeting yangban
Yangban
The yangban were part of the traditional ruling class or nobles of dynastic Korea during the Joseon Dynasty. The yangban were either landed or unlanded aristocracy who comprised the Korean Confucian idea of a "scholarly official." In reality, they were basically administrators and bureaucrats who...
along the road, they were expected to bow and use language honoring them duly, even to children of yangban. They could also be ordered to show respect or go on errands by yangban, even their children. When conducting business with higher orders they had to do so from the entrance to the garden, as even the veranda was off limits to them. Restrictions on how the baekjeong could compose themselves served to mark their lower status. Such sumptuary laws were numerous, and included forbidding the use of ornamental hairpins by women, and requiring that sandal
Sandal (footwear)
Sandals are an open type of outdoor footwear, consisting of a sole held to the wearer's foot by straps passing over the instep and, sometimes, around the ankle...
s be made of straw
Straw
Straw is an agricultural by-product, the dry stalks of cereal plants, after the grain and chaff have been removed. Straw makes up about half of the yield of cereal crops such as barley, oats, rice, rye and wheat. It has many uses, including fuel, livestock bedding and fodder, thatching and...
rather than leather
Leather
Leather is a durable and flexible material created via the tanning of putrescible animal rawhide and skin, primarily cattlehide. It can be produced through different manufacturing processes, ranging from cottage industry to heavy industry.-Forms:...
. The extent to which they were seen as a polluted people is well-illustrated in the fact that their bodies were kept in separate graveyard
Graveyard
A graveyard is any place set aside for long-term burial of the dead, with or without monuments such as headstones...
s so as not to mingle with those of the yangmin dead.
Near the end of the Joseon Dynasty, a mutual aid organization for the baekjeong was established called Sŭngdong Toga (승동도가, 承洞都家), with representatives from various communities. The organization was involved in taking actions, coordinating improvements, and acting at times as the official representative of the baekjeong in legal matters. As a result of the Kabo Reform in 1894, the group disbanded, seeing its purpose as having been served. However, this legal equality did not equate to social equality. Many remained segregated from society at large, and conditions worsened in some respects. Although still largely limited to their traditional occupations, modified regulations in 1896 allowed non-baekjeong to become licensed butchers, eventually leading to meat businesses which have pressured many out of one of the few tasks allowed them.
Changes in Korea
Towards the end of the 19th century, there was an increasing impetus on human dignity and liberalizationLiberalization
In general, liberalization refers to a relaxation of previous government restrictions, usually in areas of social or economic policy. In some contexts this process or concept is often, but not always, referred to as deregulation...
. Of particular importance was the growth of certain religions supportive of change. Tonghak, a Korean nationalist
Korean nationalism
Korean nationalism refers to nationalism among the Korean people. In the Korean context, this encompasses various of movements throughout history to maintain the Korean cultural identity, history, and ethnicity.-History:...
religion, wished to end unfair sinbun conventions, and Tonghak peasants had staged an uprising in 1894 in favor of human rights, especially for those low on the social ladder. They also demanded that the baekjeong no longer be forced to wear discriminatory hats and widows be allowed to remarry. Although this uprising was ultimately unsuccessful, it was an important impetus behind the Kabo Reform, and helped to abolish the sinbun structure that had restricted some groups legally. However, the baekjeong had benefited much less from these changes than other groups, such as the slaves.
The other major religious influence on human rights came through Christianity. Some missionaries
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
had success converting baekjeong to Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
, emphasizing that everyone has equal rights under God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
. However, everyone was not equal under the Christian congregation, and protests erupted when missionaries attempted to integrate them into worship services, with non-baekjeong finding such an attempt insensitive to traditional notions of hierarchical advantage. Thus, both Tonghak and Christianity helped to expose the baekjeong, and Koreans more generally, to ideas regarding egalitarianism and social equality. Parallel to and supportive of the rise of these liberal ideas were transitions occurring in Korean society as a whole, particularly with regard to social classes.
Social movements
Beginning in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the baekjeong began to resist the open social discrimination that existed against them. In 1900, leaders from 16 counties petitioned the mayor of JinjuJinju
Jinju is a city in South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. It was the location of the first and second Sieges of Jinju by Japanese forces during the Imjin War...
to wear the same clothes and hats as other people. When others in the north refused to wear the humiliating garb traditionally expected of them and were jailed, an effort was made to release them. Growing industrialism in Korea began to erode baekjeong dominance over certain occupations, particularly as Japanese began to control slaughterhouses and exploit them as employees.
However, as some baekjeong fell into financial despair, the loosening of segregation led others to profit from changes, giving them the ability to fund efforts for change. Beyond financial resources, organization was also strengthened due to the longstanding connections created through segregation and close-knit social networks. Between these human and financial resources, an emphasis on progressive models, and feelings of social deprivation and discrimination, the conditions were ripe for the baekjeong to mobilize for change. One of the earliest of these movements was in 1910 when Chang Chip'il, later an influential member of the Hyeongpyeongsa, attempted unsuccessfully to establish a trade union for butchers. In 1921 the Jipseong Johap was established by Korean and Japanese entrepreneurs, attempting to provide poverty assistance for butchers. However, this effort for improvement of economic conditions was soon overshadowed by an organization with broader goals.
The Hyeongpyeongsa was launched in Jinju on 23 April 1923 through the alliance of wealthy or educated baekjeong and non-baekjeong proponents of change, advocating for “the abolition of classes and of contemptuous appellations, the enlightenment of members, and the promotion of mutual friendship among members.” It advocated both for individual civil rights as well as communal fellowship, recognizing that the group must maintain its identity under the strain of changes such as urbanization
Urbanization
Urbanization, urbanisation or urban drift is the physical growth of urban areas as a result of global change. The United Nations projected that half of the world's population would live in urban areas at the end of 2008....
and industrialization which threatened to atomize the community. Thus, the Hyŏngp'yŏngsa pursued both an equality of human rights and the right to assimilate into the broader public, even as it worked to forge a common identity.
More importantly, they focused on social and economic injustices affecting the baekjeong, hoping to create an egalitarian
Egalitarianism
Egalitarianism is a trend of thought that favors equality of some sort among moral agents, whether persons or animals. Emphasis is placed upon the fact that equality contains the idea of equity of quality...
Korean society. Their efforts included attacking social discrimination by the upper class, authorities, and “commoners” and the use of degrading language against children in public schools. Power within the organization shifted several times, including the shift in 1925 from the original Chinju faction advocating educational reform to a group of Seoul intellectuals more interested in economic reforms based around traditional occupations. In 1927 a number of members of the Hyŏngp'yŏngsa were arrested for their involvement in the creation of an underground nationalist organization. Their absence was partially responsible for the organization's shift to the socialist left in the late 1920s.
The growing power of the radical wing divided the movement, and much of the economic support provided by wealthier baekjeong was pulled, particularly under the strain of the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, which had negatively impacted the meat and leather trades. The young socialists in the Hyŏngp'yŏngsa forged connections with other movements, attempting to broaden the movement and work towards “the reconstitution of Korea as a whole.”
At the 1931 national conference, they stirred controversy within the movement by introducing a dissolution proposal, feeling that the organization had abandoned its original aims in favor of those of the bourgeois intellectual
Intellectual
An intellectual is a person who uses intelligence and critical or analytical reasoning in either a professional or a personal capacity.- Terminology and endeavours :"Intellectual" can denote four types of persons:...
s directing it. It was their belief that dissolution would better serve their interests as it was replaced by trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
s. The dissolution proposal failed, but not without further alienating more conservative members of the movement, who would already financially strapped from broader economic conditions in Korea. Even more fatal for the movement was the arrest of a number of young radical members, who were accused of establishing a secret communist organization, the “Hyŏngp'yŏngsa Youth Vanguard”, which authorities said demanded struggle against feudalism and the abolishment of private property. The trial related to this accusation dragged on for four years, before the defendants were found to be innocent. It appears likely that the “organization” was a construction by Japanese authorities to ensure the labor wing of the Hyŏngp'yŏngsa would not interfere with their access to leather
Leather
Leather is a durable and flexible material created via the tanning of putrescible animal rawhide and skin, primarily cattlehide. It can be produced through different manufacturing processes, ranging from cottage industry to heavy industry.-Forms:...
needed for the invasion of China
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...
. As a result, the Hyeongpyeongsa shifted to the right, abandoning progressive ideals and finally disbanding in 1935, claiming the movement's aims had successfully been met.
Going through the colonial period
Korea under Japanese rule
Korea was under Japanese rule as part of Japan's 35-year imperialist expansion . Japanese rule ended in 1945 shortly after the Japanese defeat in World War II....
and the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
, Korean society changed enormously. Traditional Korean values were gradually loosened, and with those social changes, the traditional caste system also began to be loosened. Today in Korea, the system has completely disappeared. Although the term 'baekjeong' is still used, it's usually considered to be a historical term, little-used in daily life.