“This Stop is Geumnam-ro 5-ga Station”… A Phrase Recalling Gwangju 46 Years Ago

This piece from the Hankyoreh offers a poignant journey through Gwangju, tracing the "May 18th Road" that commemorates the 1980 pro-democracy uprising. It's more than just a historical recounting; it's an immersive experience, inviting readers to walk the very streets where citizens bravely confronted martial law forces.

The narrative vividly brings to life the sites of pivotal moments: the initial clashes at Gwangju Station, the widespread protests at the former Provincial Bus Terminal, and the brutal crackdown near Gwangju High School. The description of the "Torch Course," one of the six routes along the May 18th Road, emphasizes the urban nature of the struggle and the courage of ordinary people, including students, workers, and even families, who took to Geumnam-ro.

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The subway running under that Geumnam-ro land, Line 1 Geumnam-ro 5-ga Station and Geumnam-ro 4-ga Station. The basement of the square in front of the old Provincial Government Building is Culture Complex Station. When you enter the city center from Gwangju Songjeong Station by subway, the announcement "This stop is Geumnam-ro 5-ga Station" flows out. Hearing that announcement, it feels like a long tunnel that pulls you into the Gwangju of 46 years ago.

What makes this piece particularly resonant from a South Korean perspective is its ability to connect the past with the present. The author notes how the subway stations, specifically Geumnam-ro 5-ga and Geumnam-ro 4-ga, now run beneath the very streets that witnessed such turmoil. The announcer's voice declaring "This stop is Geumnam-ro 5-ga Station" is described as a tunnel pulling one back 46 years to the Gwangju of 1980, a powerful reminder that history is not just in books but embedded in the landscape.

The article also draws on literary references, particularly Han Kang's novel "Boy Meets Boy," to illustrate the lasting trauma and the struggle for remembrance. The personal anecdote of being struck by a paratrooper on Geumnam-ro during the uprising adds a deeply personal layer, underscoring how the events of May 1980 continue to shape individual lives and collective memory in South Korea. This is a story of resilience, sacrifice, and the enduring fight for democracy, told from a distinctly Korean viewpoint that acknowledges the deep scars left by this pivotal historical event.

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Tens of thousands of people were flooding into the square from all over. The university students who had been moving around in scrum formations since early spring were nowhere to be seen. Old men, elementary school children, male and female workers in work clothes, young men in ties, young women in two-piece suits and heels, and even middle-aged men in Saemaul Undong jackets carrying folding umbrellas as their only weapon. At the head of all these people, the bodies of two young men shot at the new station were being carried on a cart towards the square.