“Transgender X Labor” Series: Lawyer and Activist Park Han-hee
By Park Ju-yeon
Published: February 2, 2026
Translated by Se-young Kim
Korea's first openly transgender lawyer. This is
a description often attached to Park Han-hee. The words "first,"
"openly," and "transgender" all have weight, and so Ms. Park
constantly carries those burdens with her. In that sense, she's a
"special" person, but in terms of being just another worker
struggling to survive in Korea's demanding society, she's not so special.
This interview focused on the work of Park
Han-hee, a lawyer affiliated with Hope and Law Korean Lawyers for
Public Interest and Human Rights, and an activist for Rainbow Action. Why did Park
Han-hee choose this line of work?
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| I talked with attorney Park Han-hee at the office of Hope and Law Korean Lawyers for Public Interest and Human Rights. ©Ilda |
On a day with below-zero freezing weather, I met Park Han-hee at the office of Hope and Law Korean Lawyers for Public Interest and Human Rights (hereafter ‘Hope and Law’). Ms. Park, who has been spending more time at the Rainbow Action office lately and is also struggling with planning various activities for the year to come, spoke about what it means to "do this work."
-What was your dream when you were young?
It was always becoming a scientist. I've loved
math and science since I was little. My teacher put me in charge of the science
club, so I'd go to the science lab room with my friends and do experiments.
Throughout my school years, I had only one dream: to become a
scientist/robotics engineer. When I was deciding on my college major, my
teacher asked if I had considered going to medical school, but I was told that I
needed to major in mechanical or electrical engineering to do robotics, so I
chose mechanical engineering.
-Why
didn't that dream come true? Were there any stumbling blocks?
Even in college, I interned at a robotics lab
and stuff. But starting in college, my introspection about my sexual identity
deepened, and I began to feel confused. While I hadn't had the luxury of
contemplating such things in middle school and high school, college broadened
my horizons and allowed me to access a lot of information. I learned about
transgender people, but I felt like there was nothing I could do about it.
Depression set in.
I thought that even if I became a robotics
engineer in my current state, it wouldn’t feel like achieving my dream "as
myself." Even if my dream came true while I continued hiding behind that
mask, I didn't think it would make me happy. Because it wouldn’t be my true
self’s doing. From then on, I simply gave up. I gave up even thinking about the
future. I thought, "I'll just live with whatever comes my way. What's the
point of dreams?" After graduating, I looked for a job. After all, I had to
eat and live.
More than anything, I wanted to get out of my
dorm and my hometown. I lived in a dorm for four years, and of course it was a
boys' dorm, and I had to use the communal showers. I didn't want to live like
that anymore. So I thought, "Let's move to Seoul. Let's live alone."
That was my only criteria when looking for a job. Honestly, it's not easy to
get a job in Seoul after majoring in mechanical engineering. So I joined an
engineering company and worked in the "machine purchasing"
department. Actually, the job was more sales and marketing-related, so I mostly
negotiated money.
I worked at that company for two years and two
months. In my first year, I was just motivated to make money, but in my second
year, I started to wonder, "How long do I have to keep doing this?" I
wasn't even applying what I'd learned in college in my major. I also wondered,
"How long can I keep hiding my identity?" I felt like something would
happen, whether it was someone outing me or me finally bursting out, and the
company wouldn't protect me if that happened. Thinking like that, I felt like I
was wasting time. I decided I had to find another career.
-Why did you choose to go
to law school?
I needed a job that I wouldn't get fired from even
when I came out as transgender. So, either I’d have to become the owner of some
kind of store or I'd need to have some kind of professional license. I
considered becoming a patent attorney, lawyer, or doctor, but a classmate from
college happened to graduate from law school around then and start working as a
lawyer, and they said it was pretty good. That's why I started preparing for
law school.
-Did
you go through your transition after entering law school?
I entered law school as a "male
student" and spent my first year like that. Then I turned 30 [in Korean
age]. Lying in bed in the cold winter, I thought, "My 20s have passed
without me living the life I wanted to live..." It felt like such a waste
of time. I wondered what the point of living like this was, so I took a leave
of absence. That's when I came out to my parents and began my transition. I figured
that it would be okay at school since it’s over once I graduate anyway.
However, I was worried about whether the Korean
legal community would hire a transgender person as a lawyer. It wouldn't be
worth it if I couldn't get a job even after earning my license. So, after
searching around, I contacted Hope and Law. I knew they handled cases related
to LGBTQ+ people. I asked if they could offer career counseling. I met with attorney
Han Ga-ram and we started talking. Honestly, until then, I didn't even know
what a public interest lawyer was. (Laughs)
-Listening to your story, it seems like you
didn't have any specific plans before you became the public interest lawyer you
are today.
I had no plans. I started to question my
identity in college and was in a state of despair, so I never thought about
what I'd be doing in 10 years. I just knew I had to earn money because I knew I
couldn't be financially independent from my parents if I didn't.
-I once heard from an acquaintance that the
percentage of LGBTQ+ students in law school is quite high. In the US, 13% of
recent law school graduates are LGBTQ+.
I think there are quite a few. There was even a
gathering of female queer lawyers. For sexual minorities, it's often difficult
(due to gender identity issues) to continue working at a [regular] company, or
even to get hired in the first place. That's why they think they need to become
professionals. Honestly, I never even thought about joining a law firm after
graduating from law school. I just thought I'd open up my own practice and work
there.
I think it's really hard to survive in a regular
company. When I was working at my previous company, I'd go out in the
transgender community on the weekends and hang out, but when I came to work on
Monday, people would ask, "What did you do this weekend?" and I
wouldn't know what to say. I'd just say I was at home, and they'd ask,
"Why are you just staying home?" Sometimes, when a coworker invited
me out, I'd decline, and they'd ask, "Why are you avoiding me?" You couldn't
say you were living life as yourself [when not at work]. It just became increasingly stressful. So I started looking
for another career.
-What's it like working as
a public interest lawyer? Is it fun?
I really like the fact that my values and my work align. It's hard for most employees at regular companies to achieve that. They usually separate their self-fulfillment from their work, but I'm able to do both simultaneously. Also, when I entered law school, I vaguely thought, "I still want to do something for LGBTQ+ people," and I'm happy that I'm achieving that goal. Of course, my income might be lower than other lawyers', but that's okay.
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| Attorney Park Han-hee, along with Attorney Kim Ji-rim of GongGam Human Rights Law Foundation, appeared in a video on the Korean Bar Association's YouTube channel to discuss the process and significance of winning the case for recognition of same-sex spouses as dependents on health insurance. (Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8OPGB3KAt4) |
-When did you feel most rewarded at work?
I think it was my victory in the lawsuit for
recognition of same-sex [common law] spouses as dependents on health insurance.
(See the [Korean-language] article “The first
step toward marriage equality has been taken”) Kim Ji-rim of GongGam
Human Rights Law Foundation was the main attorney for this case, and I also worked
on it. To be honest, when we filed the lawsuit, I thought, "It seems
difficult to win, but I'll give it my all." We lost in the first trial,
but I was so happy when we won in the appeal. The response from people around
me was really positive. I heard that other people also thought, "This
works in Korea too? The door opens when you knock?" I think it's memorable
because it taught me that "if you try, you can do it." I think it
gave hope to many LGBTQ+ people.
-It was a truly significant ruling for our
society. Do you feel there's been any change in the atmosphere regarding LGBTQ+
rights among legal professionals?
Hope and Law and GongGam
have been hosting the annual "LGBTQ Lawyer Conference" since 2015.
It's a two-day event, and last year, about 45 people came. The number of
participants continues to grow, as does the number of LGBTQ+ lawyers. Younger
people, in particular, seem to think, "Isn't it a bit odd that marriage
equality exists in other countries, but we don’t have it? There's no [good] argument
against it, is there?" It's true. When people ask, "Why can’t Korea
have it too?" you can’t answer them.
The
lawsuit for recognition of same-sex spouses as dependents on health insurance took
a long time to be ruled on by the Supreme Court, and the truth is, you couldn’t
know when the ruling would come out. Didn't you feel frustrated or stressed
during the process?
I thought, "Somehow, it'll work out. It'll come out someday." I'm the type of person who doesn't make extensive plans, but rather just takes things as they come. I don't get stressed out, wondering, "Why isn't there a verdict?"
Still, my work life isn't stress-free. First of
all, there's just too much work (laughs). It's fine to focus on one thing, but
right now, I'm working at Hope and Law, at Rainbow Action, and writing... It's
a bit daunting because I have to juggle so many things. I have to adapt my mode
to fit each role, and that's not easy.
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| Attorney Park Han-hee speaking at the "Let's Go, Toward Equality! December 10 People's March" held at Bosingak Pavilion in Seoul to mark Human Rights Day. She stated, “Democracy is only possible when equality is at the center," and "Enacting an anti-discrimination law is the path to improving public welfare and achieving social integration." (Source: Rainbow Action) |
-What do you do when you get stressed at work?
I drink. (Laughs) I get concerned about my
health, so I exercise, too. I love the mountains, so I go hiking often. I
haven't been able to go for a while due to lack of time, but I'm a member of
the Minbyun Hiking Club and the Seongmi Mountain Village Hiking Club. I try to
go once a month. I'm planning to participate in the 10km Women's Marathon this
year, so I need to prepare for that, too.
-What are your plans for this year?
I've been serving as co-chair of Rainbow Action
since last year. I'm trying to be more involved in Rainbow Action's activities.
There's a marriage equality lawsuit underway, and I'm planning to run a
campaign related to that.
I'm also trying to speak out on transgender
rights. I believe there's something we can do within the solidarity framework
of Rainbow Action, so I'm going to focus on that.
-Then what is Park Han-hee's personal goal in life?
Actually, I'm not someone who plans for the
future. I don’t know where the world is heading... It's hard to make predictions
about even 10 years from now, right? So, I'm trying to do what I can now. Up
until now, I've been involved in various activities and have been interested in
this and that, but from now on, I want to be more focused. Looking back, since I
didn't get to live my twenties as myself, I just tried a bunch of different
things, thinking I needed to make up for the things I couldn't do then. Now
that I'm forty, I think I need to be more selective and focused.
In that sense, I really want to achieve the
enactment of the anti-discrimination law, and I want to continue to show what
it's like to live as a transgender person. I want to see myself growing into
middle age, becoming older, becoming a senior. Someone who continues to speak
out while living her life. I'd love to do another interview like this when I'm
50. (Laughs)
-It seems like you'll continue to work hard.
What kind of worker do you want to be?
I want to be a worker who stands with others on
the ground. There are so many different types of workers, like youth workers,
migrant workers, and workers with disabilities. I want to continue to connect
with them and build solidarity. My experience is important, but it's not the
only one, so I want to become a worker who connects with more people.
*Original article: https://ildaro.com/10379
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