What is the Dark Tourism?
Main theme of our Learning Cluster
The term "dark tourism" describes the touristic attraction of sites associated with death, disasters, and atrocities. Visits to dark touristic places provide visitors with entertainment, as well as the opportunity for education and remembrance. The significance of visiting these places is for people to remember the disasters and learn from the past, preventing a similar tragedy from occurring again. Although we've only visited places in South Korea, some lessons can be learned from differing sites that aren't exclusive to South Korea and are transnational.
< This photo was taken at the Gwangju Democratization Movement Archives, a replica of human remains buried roughly while fighting for democracy against the dictatorship. Later, they were relocated to the national cemetery.
Gordon, A. (2019, March 15). Introduction: Dark tourism and the history of Imperial and contemporary japan. The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus. https://apjjf.org/2019/06/Gordon.html