From the Editor

May 2023, Issue 255

Published: May 1, 2023

Won Sun-seok

Photo courtesy of May 18 Foundation

Publisher Dr. Shin Gyonggu

Editor-in-Chief Dr. David E. Shaffer

Managing Editor William Urbanski

Chief Copy Editor Isaiah Winters

Layout Editors Karina Prananto, Kim Sukang

Photographer Kim Hillel Yunkyoung

Online Editor Karina Prananto

The Gwangju News is the first English monthly magazine for the general public in Korea, first published in 2001. Each monthly issue covers local and regional issues, with a focus on the roles and activities of the international residents and local English-speaking communities.

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It’sMay again. For many people, May brings forth pleasant thoughts of spring – warm breezes, short sleeves, blossoming flowers, budding trees, outdoor activities, and traveling. This issue of the Gwangju News brings you articles related to these topics. But for many of the residents of Gwangju, and especially for those of us who were living in the city in 1980, May also brings forth extraordinarily unpleasant thoughts – memories of protests, gunfire, blood in the streets, burning buildings, helicopter gunship attack, and death, many deaths. The ten days (May 18–27) of the “Gwangju Incident,” as it was labeled at the time, created wounds that have yet to heal. The injuries have regularly been irritated by truth deniers and those who attempt to switch the blame for the May 18 uprising onto the residents of Gwangju!

The four-plus decades since May 18 have been a long and arduous journey of defending and uncovering the truths of the May 18 Democratization Movement. But meticulous fact-finding continues. The recent visit to Gwangju by Chun Woo-won, grandson of Chun Doo-hwan, and his apology to the bereaved families and residents of Gwangju was a welcomed event – and the tragedy of May was something that he personally had nothing to do with.

A major institution for disseminating the truth of the Gwangju uprising and the spirit of May is the May 18 Memorial Foundation. Our cover feature this month spotlights the chairperson of the Foundation, Won Sun-seok, who tells of his personal participation in May 18, the work of the Foundation, and his hopes for the future.

Our second feature is of another individual with involvement with the May 18 movement, artist Kim Kyung-joo, who was instrumental in spreading the spirit of May through minjung genre woodblock prints and ink paintings [People in the Arts]. Prof. Park discusses May 18 from the viewpoint of dignity [Contemplations & Ponderings]. Also, take a gaze upwards at our Photo of the Month, the May 18 Memorial Monument, photographed by Karina Prananto. Feel the spirit of May well up within.

Karina is a member of the staff at the Gwangju News and has been for over a decade. If you have noticed the improvements in layout over the years, they can be attributed mainly to Karina (though advances in technology may also deserve a bit of credit). Sadly, we will be losing Karina (or “Nana,” as she is affectionately called) at the Gwangju News, as she will be returning to her native Indonesia due to family matters there. Her absence will be greatly felt, but we wish her the best.

Stay Covid safe, remember May, and enjoy the Gwangju News!

David E. Shaffer Editor-in-Chief Gwangju