For this week’s literary group, the prompt was “Writing Under State Repression – Write a poem or scene about oppression and loss of freedom.” I thought about the attempted 2024 self-coup by President Yoon in South Korea (https://cityuntangled.com/2025/10/19/the-south-korean-self-coup-of-2024/). I decided to write a very short piece of fiction based on it. The optional words we could use from the random word list are in bold.
13-year-old Jason was watching the news with his dad in an apartment in New Jersey. This was Jason’s highlight of the day. He dreamed of growing up to be one of the TV anchors, or even better, one of the important people who were the main characters in the news.
A man with dark hair and dark eyes like him and his dad showed up on the screen as a main character.
“South Korean President Yoon Jae Hun was released today from lifetime imprisonment under a special pardon. He attempted a self-coup 20 years ago by sending the military to the legislature. He was sentenced a year later,” the anchor said, his face neutral and voice calm.
Jason’s dad tensed up and sunk into the couch.
“Dad, what’s a self-coup?”
“It’s when somebody who already has all the power tries to become a king.”
“You can’t do that! It’s a democracy,” Jason said while giggling, proud of what he just learned in school.
“Some people still try.”
When Jason was 19, his father died of cancer. Some said it was from all the chemicals he encountered while running a laundromat. Some said it was the stress of building a new life in a new country.
For the first time since he was 10, Jason got to visit South Korea, the birthplace of his father, but not his. His relatives wanted to hold a funeral with his cremated remains. He flew with his mother, who did not speak a single word throughout the flight. About 10 of his relatives, including his uncle, the younger brother of his dad, were gathered in the funeral parlor connected to a general hospital. All the men were wearing black suits, and all the women were wearing black hanbok dresses.
Jason’s uncle, who spoke English, called him aside to a corner. They sat cross-legged across a low-legged dinner table.
“This must be hard for you.”
Jason just nodded.
“I am going to say some hard things. You are an adult. You need to know.”
Jason gulped in anticipation.
“Did your father tell you what he did for a living in Korea?”
“He said he ran a business that didn’t work out.”
“That’s not accurate,” Jason’s uncle said and took a sip of water. “Do you know about the coup attempt by Yoon about 25 years ago?”
Jason nodded. He remembered the news segment he had watched with his dad.
“Your dad was a mid-level public servant. He assisted with the coup attempt and spent a year in jail. That is what led him to leave the country.”
Jason stared at his uncle. He felt his dreams shattering. No more being a TV anchor or being the main character on the news. Maybe not even a laundromat owner. To be famous, he needed a proud past, not being the son of an insurrectionist.