|
|
|
|
Sex Among Allies: Military Prostitution in U.S./Korea Relations, by Katharine H.S. Moon
Finally, I can breathe a sigh of great relief after many years of sleepless nights, fear at not finding enough information, and anxiety that this project would never have an end. I have many people to thank, who I hope will share in this sigh of relief--and celebration of women's voices in international relations.
Michael Doyle and Atul Kohli of Princeton University offered their thoughtful guidance as intellectual advisers, moral supporters, and provocative devil's advocates on my dissertation committee. I also would like to thank Lynn T. White III and Mrs. Mildred Kalmus of Princeton University and Samuel Kim of Columbia University for their constant encouragement of my studies.
I am also indebted to the Ann Plato Fellowship of Trinity College (Hartford), the Center for International Studies of Princeton University, and the United Methodist Church for their generous financial support while I was researching and writing as a dissertation student.
To the many friends who have helped me articulate my thoughts and maintain my sanity through the most stressful moments, I offer you unending thanks, especially Yumiko Mikanagi, Patricia Schechter, Thomas and Sandy Nolden, Jane Dawson, Taeku Lee, and Elizabeth Crowell. I owe special thanks to André Schmid, who combed through the dissertation version with more care than I, and also to Victor Cha. Both offered thoughtful, critical comments through the revision process, even when I requested their help at very short notice.
Diana Lee and Grace Lee, who became my friends during my research stay in Korea, have become my new sisters. Together, we took many trips to the different camptown areas, listened to and ate meals with many camptown women who sell sex to U.S. soldiers, watched them comb their children's hair, carried one another's heavy equipment and the heavy hearts that grew from what we saw, heard, and felt. Their documentary on U.S.-Korea camptown prostitution, Camp Arirang, debuted in 1995. I owe them my friendship and love.
This book could not have been written without Ms. Kim Yonja's energetic willingness to teach me all about camptown prostitution and the lives of the women bar workers. She opened her mind, heart, and home to me and shared her personal past as a camptown prostitute; she has been a generous teacher. I am also grateful to the staff and members of My Sister's Place (Turebang) in Tongduch'on and Songsan, especially Ms. Yu Pongnim, Mrs. Faye Moon, and Ms. Kim Hyonson, for sharing their perspectives on camptowns and U.S. bases and showing me the power of commitment and dedication to improving women's lives. There are numerous officials of the ROK government and the U.S. military that I need to thank, but in order to protect their identities, I shall not name them. Many shared their personal files and memories and offered invaluable accounts of camptown politics and U.S.-Korea relations.
Kate Wittenberg, editor-in-chief of Columbia University Press, has been a patient, considerate leader through the publication process. I owe her and her staff a great deal. I would also like to thank the reviewers, who offered insightful comments on revising the manuscript. Jennifer Wallner, a student at Wellesley College, has been my "savior" through the revision; she contributed her computer skills, library research time, and cheerful "can-do" spirit. A hearty thanks also to John Frankl, Ph.D. candidate in modern Korean literature at Harvard University, for his assistance with the transliteration of Korean names and words.
To Cynthia Enloe--thanks! How fortunate many of us younger scholars are to have a mentor, visionary, and generous moral supporter like you! I owe much to my family. My mother, Ai Ra Kim, has endured my bad temper and regular "venting" and offered in return her prayers and herself as my emotional anchor. She also helped me with research and translation. My father, Kwang Hwan Moon, has been a formidable supporter, actively helping me dig out materials in the libraries of Seoul, offering me complicated history lessons on U.S.-Korea relations while we rode in taxis or drank coffee during cold winter days in Korea. Even when he disagreed with my interpretations, he never stopped believing that I was doing what I believed I had to do. To Caroline, my sister, housemate, and best friend, thanks for injecting humor and freshly baked cookies into my life. And to Abby, my cat, thanks for putting up with the tap-tap of the keyboard that kept interrupting naps.
Sex Among Allies: Military Prostitution in U.S.-Korea Relations
Email this citation