1. Why re-envisioning the Mingyohyeop 2.0?
(1) Inequality is intensifying, and a multi-faceted social crisis is escalating.
Since the 1990s, Korean society has patched up two economic crises with neoliberal policies, exacerbating inequality and hitting a new crisis of democracy. Severe disparities in income and wealth have led to social and cultural inequalities in housing, education, and health, transforming Korean society into a place devoid of hope and a future for communal living. This has also led to a demographic cliff and job insecurity, with the resultant culture of discrimination and hatred spreading throughout society. The limits of a system that has failed to achieve substantial social and economic democracy are now threatening the very foundation of a democratic society. As seen in the COVID-19 pandemic, exploitation of nature, and transnational inequalities have precipitated a climate and environmental crisis, while those forced into poverty face constant threats to their safety and lives without exception.
(2) Professors and researchers are called to action for building a new society of democratic equality.
The call for the renewal of democracy and societal reform briefly flared up during the candlelight protests from fall 2016 to spring 2017, but Korean society has yet to take a step further. Anyone yearning for a society that realizes the full values of democracy and equality must reflect on the aspirations of the marginalized groups—workers, citizens, women, youth—expressed through the candlelight revolution, ponder anew the direction for our democracy, and rise again in solidarity. We, as professors and researchers, also plan to earnestly reflect upon inequality and discrimination from our respective positions and take concrete action.
(3) Urgent reconstruction of the crumbling university and research community is needed.
The higher education in Korea today is in the worst situation due to new crises compounded atop existing malignancies. The tyrannical behaviors and corruption of private education foundations (sahak jaedan) persist, and the decay within the academic community are severe. Neoliberalism has utterly erased the public nature of universities, which have now become outposts for class discrimination and inequality reproduction. The problems within the universities are equally grave, marked by severe disparities in wages and status. Some tenure-track professors in the metropolitan and national universities enjoy comfortable wealth and power, but this is at the cost of discrimination and exploitation of non-tenure-track instructors, as well as regional and female researchers. This situation has led to the fragmentation and survivalist mentality within the academic and research community, to a degree that is difficult to gauge. The profession of professorship has lost its dignity and respect, and the university has transformed from a place of learning justice and truth to one rife with abuse of power and trickery.
2. How will we carry out the vision of the Mingyohyeop 2.0?
(4) We will organize new practices within the changed conditions.
The National Council of Professors for Democratization, with 33 years of history, faces a crisis in both organizational and substantive aspects of its movement. The glory of past achievements is fading, and the organization has weakened due to aging. A significant cause has been our failure to reflect upon and alter the practices corresponding to the rapidly changing professional statuses of Korean college professors and researchers, as well as the severe hierarchical and discriminatory structures that emerged in the process. The Council resolves to start anew from specific colleges and academic institutions, recognizing that change must begin with ourselves.
(5) We will endeavor to form a new subject for civil society movements.
The new Council thus will fulfill its duty as educators and researchers responsible for expertise and higher education, while simultaneously contributing to the changes and social roles within the larger civil society movement. The controversies and tragic events that have continued within the progressive camp and civil society after 2019 underscore the historical end of one cycle in Korea’s civil society movements and the pressing need for a new transition. We are deeply aware that there can be no persuasive civil movement or new democracy without a sensitive perspective on generation, gender, and inequality issues, and we must strive to form a new subject for civil society movements together.
3. What ideals does the Mingyohyeop 2.0, strive for?
(6) The National Council of Professors and Researchers for Democratic and Equal Society, the Mingyohyeop 2.0, aspires to the realization of a democratic and equal society.
We envision a democratic and equal society not only as one in which various decisions are made through democratic procedures that truly reflect each member’s will but also as one in which the produced wealth and value in society are evenly distributed among all current and future members based on their contributions and circumstances. Moreover, a democratic equal society is one without any discrimination or exclusion based on gender, nationality, race, labor conditions, as well as wealth, age, and residence. In particular, the Mingyohyeop 2.0 firmly rejects all forms of discrimination and exclusion based on gender and opposes all violence against women and sexual minorities; it also actively supports movements for climate justice that future generations may equally enjoy the material and environmental resources we have today. Additionally, we are committed to opposing all kinds of conflicts and wars and striving for peaceful coexistence between peoples and nations.
(7) The Mingyohyeop 2.0, aims for movements that transcend the confines of universities and academic institutions.
Recognizing that the issues of non-democracy and inequality within universities and academia are closely linked with those across Korean society, the Mingyohyeop 2.0 will work tirelessly within our affiliations and areas of expertise to abolish discrimination and create progressive alternatives. We also understand the structural totality of the problems facing Korean society and will study across disciplines, stand in solidarity with, and support those who suffer and are oppressed.
(8) The Mingyohyeop 2.0 aims for movements that create a sustainable academic ecosystem.
In conjunction with university reform, the Association will strive to foster a sustainable academic ecosystem and enhance the welfare of academics and researchers. We will do our utmost to ensure that this movement contributes to the production and sharing of progressive discourse on societal reform and remains connected to supporting and standing in solidarity with popular movements and the socially disadvantaged.
(9) The Association for Democratic Equality, Version 2.0, aspires to be an organization that provides progressive discourse and practical strategies.
The organization and operation of the Mingyohyeop 2.0 will focus on creating discourse and practice aimed at solving the problems faced by Korean society and bringing forward the future of a democratic equal society. We will reflect on and reform itself not only in terms of the substance of the movement but also in organizing members and managing our organization. We are committed to enhancing communication among members beyond differences in generation, gender, and specialization, and to seeking an organizational structure and operation conducive to smooth solidarity and participation. In particular, the Mingyohyeop 2.0 will support and join various researchers, especially early-career, regional, female researchers, and independent researchers, who are reshaping the academic community, to take part in crucial decision-making and create a new history of academic movements.
(10) The Mingyohyeop 2.0, strives to be an organization that practices solidarity with various progressive forces.
The Mingyohyeop 2.0 will routinely practice solidarity with diverse progressive forces and join forces with labor, women’s rights, welfare, human rights, peace, and other movement organizations and entities that share the values of a democratic equal society. In particular, we will stand with those suffering from inequality, discrimination, exclusion, and deprivation, working hand in hand with various progressive academic and researcher groups. Such solidarity will fully bear fruit when our organizational and movement capabilities are much stronger than they are now. The Mingyohyeop 2.0 is determined to reinvent itself as Version 2.0, aiming for the new goal of realizing a democratic and equal society amid the changing conditions of universities and society. To this end, we will regroup and work together with a diverse range of academics and researchers both inside and outside universities. Hereby, we declare the launch of the National Council of Professors and Researchers for Democratic and Equal Society, the Mingyohyeop 2.0.
December 12, 2020
National Council of Professors and Researchers for a Democratic Equal Society (Mingyohyeop 2.0)