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Post by Admin on Dec 14, 2013 3:04:43 GMT -8
 Hines Ward, Jr. and his mother, Kim Young He. Hines Edward Ward, Jr. (born March 8, 1976) is a former American football wide receiver and current NBC studio analyst who played fourteen seasons for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at the University of Georgia. The Pittsburgh Steelers chose him in the third round of the 1998 NFL Draft, and became the team's all-time leader in receptions, receiving yardage and touchdown receptions. Ward was voted MVP of Super Bowl XL, and upon retirement was one of only eight NFL players to have 1,000 or more career receptions. Ward was born in Seoul, South Korea, to an African American father, Hines Ward Sr., and Korean mother, Kim Young He (김영희). His family moved to Atlanta and East Point, Georgia when Hines Jr. was one, and Hines Sr. went to Germany to serve a tour of duty. The next year Ward's parents divorced, leaving Ward to live with his mother and then with his paternal grandmother after Hines Sr. convinced a family court that Kim could not raise Hines Jr. independently, because she did not speak English. Ward would later be reunited with his mother at the age of 7. During this time, Hines Ward Sr. did not support Ward with child support or visit Ward regularly with Ward stating that he talks with his father about once every two years.[2] Ward has stated that he has never reconciled with his father who abandoned him when he was 2 years old.[3] |
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Post by Admin on Dec 16, 2013 4:01:50 GMT -8
Hines Ward’s Effect on Korean Society Many cultures around the world display certain elements of ethnocentrism, as their citizens may feel that their ethnic group is superior to other racial, ethnic, or cultural groups. But in South Korea, one of their “adopted” and “homegrown” heroes, Pittsburgh Steelers star wide receiver Hines Ward, is causing Koreans to take a hard, critical look at their ethnocentrism: even as Koreans watch Ward’s stellar catches and crunching blocks endlessly played out on TV, they’re taking a hard look at their ethnocentric culture. Ward’s racial background is sparking a round of soul-searching about deep prejudices that often subject biracial children to taunts at school, rejection on the job, and poverty. “It is very difficult in Korean society,” says Yi Kyung Kyun, country director of the Pearl Buck Foundation. “They don’t appreciate alien people. They are prejudiced against mixed-blood children.” The prejudices show up in every phase of the lives of the 5,000 biracial Koreans from broken homes, most of whom have never known their fathers. . . . Mr. Yeo hopes that Ward – who is receiving rock-star treatment – will help to break down some of the severe prejudices often visible in this heterogeneous society. I think it’s great that Hines Ward can have this positive effect on Koreans. As our world becomes increasingly multicultural and globalized, Asians (and for that matter, citizens from all countries around the world) really need to become more familiar with and less prejudiced against “outsiders” and others who are different from them. This is especially true in many Asian countries that have a history of hostility and prejudice against such “barbarians.” This development of greater tolerance towards outsiders can also benefit Asian Americans in two ways. First, since a large (and growing) portion of the Asian American population are multiracial, this greater level of acceptance can help to integrate both groups together as a more cohesive racial group. Secondly, reducing the level of intolerance against “outsiders” can also help promote a greater sense of pan-Asian identity where Chinese, Japanese, Koreans, Vietnamese, etc. can more readily accept and feel solidarity with each other while still appreciating each group’s unique characteristics. It looks like Hines Ward came to Korea at just the right time. Who knows, he could be the start of something big . . . Source: www.asian-nation.org/headlines/2006/04/hines-wards-effect-on-korean-society/ |
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