Older Generation
Who Do Not Know Shame
Every day, I get off of subway at Namsandong and get on the university shuttle bus. When I go through the main gate of the university, blue sky of autumn and Geumjeong mountain view is unfold. This moment when I go to school with students whom I love is very happy and precious. However, every way toward lab does not makes me happy all the time. That is because the university is unsettled due to reorganization of the department, the resignation of the president in the middle, and the inauguration of the new president after last April. Without determining someone's fault, I feel uneasy whenever I see the red and black banners and hand-written posters in the university campus.
The reason why I feel uneasy is not because of banners and hand-written posters' purpose or political meanings. Nor is it intended to criticize or favor any particular person or group. Whatever the cause, our university is going through a conflict situation of emergency now and communication among members is not working well. Because of this, students were in great confusion, but no one is apologizing nor taking responsibility about this situation.
This situation itself is very heartbreaking and sad. I often told my students that I am sorry in my major and liberal arts classes last semester. I told them that I fully realize the responsibility of 'lacking teacher,' and the 'old generation' to make a better world and a better school. I thought I was not the 'old generation' but I became an older generation before I knew. Standard Korean Language Dictionary of the National Institute of Korean Language defines the word 'old generation' as a generation who aged enough to lead the present society.
Like the definition in the dictionary, the old generation is clearly older people. However, the older generation is people who had been given not just the weight of their age, but the responsibility to lead and change our society in a healthy way. The reason why I am truly embarrassing is because I am not taking that responsibility myself. When I was young, I used to dream a better future as I talk about it all night and write critical writings as I read books. However, now that I have become an older generation, this world in which the youth of this age is living did not get any better than when I was young.
Is that so? I can't bear to say that students should be interested in the school's current issues and become main agents of change. Since that might be like shifting responsibility as if our university got into such a difficult situation because students were not interested. The current generation is the one who is responsible for failure of creating a school where our students can study confidently and happily, and a healthy society where they can be treated as much as they put in their efforts. Also, the difficulties that the school is facing currently are something that teachers should feel ashamed and apologize, not students. Of course, I do not think that our university will change only with the reflection and apology of the older generation. The reality is not that optimistic. It will not be easy, but efforts of both students and staff to solve the problems that they are facing one by one is required.
On 1 October, Dr. Chang Soon-heung, the eleventh president of our university, was inaugurated. I sincerely hope that he will be the 'relief pitcher' who resolves and overcomes the conflicts and difficulties that our university is facing by gathering the opinions and wishes of the members.