Before making the 344th edition of the Hanyang Journal, all of the reporters and editiors came together to discuss on what to write about. We all had the time to look back on the past few months and weridly enough, everyone seened to agree that 2019 was a year where the expression of hate was at its peak in Korean society.
Many words were created and used to hate on a specific person, gender, social group or culture. These expressions were and still used today under the excuse of "criticism", while in reality they are coloser to reproaching and attacking. I am quite sure that whoever is reading this, you are a part of a group that has been or is being hated by others. You might have hated someone or some group, looking at them with color glasses on.
Personally, I believe that hatred is a natural feeling pro- duced in the daily lives of people. The feeling of hatred is not wrong nor should be criticized. However, the moment this feel- ing is expressed in any form and is delivered, there is a respon- sibility that follows with in the hatred that one shows: they become the assailant. It does not matter how many times one has commented on an article, a social media post or video and ‘hated’ on a specific person. The moment the person wrote down a hate comment and clicked the upload button, that per- son becomes an assailant in “Cyberbullying”. An assailant and victim are created at that very moment, and it becomes a scar that the victim has to hold on to for their rest of their life. No one has the right to hurt anyone mentally or physically nor do the victims have the responsibility to struggle through the pain that hatred has left behind, And it is the same with what has happened with the 'Hwaseong Serial Murders', where several innocent people were killed by one person's hate.
It has been quite a hectic year; many incidents have hap- pened and are still happening. But more than anything, it must have been a busy year for everyone, dealing with everything that has been occurring in life. Leaving only a few weeks from 2020, everyone is trying hard for the ending that each admires.
Ending the two years that I have spent in the Hanyang Journal, and ending the last edition of 2019, I would like to say to the readers to tell yourself that you are doing great and this is the best you can do, the best choice you can make. Sometimes, hatred towards someone else comes within one not being able to love one’s self. Thus, let us use the last few weeks of 2019 to love rather than hate. And I hope you notice that despite what- ever, whoever hates on you, there is always someone who will love you and wish the best for you. Cheers to 2019 and to the Hanyang Journal.