Controversy Over Hwang Hyun-pil Lecture Spreads to Parents' Relay Protests

The controversy surrounding Gyeonggi Province Office of Education's invitation of Hwang Hyun-pil, director of the Institute for Historical Accuracy, to deliver a lecture is spreading beyond teachers' organizations and political circles to relay one-person protests by parents.

According to education circles on the 27th, parents have recently conducted successive one-person protests around the Gyeonggi Province Office of Education, holding signs that read "Immediately withdraw biased historical lectures."

Participants displayed messages such as "Immediately halt Ahn Min-seok's biased history instructor education" and "Immediately withdraw biased historical lectures."

The controversy began when the provincial education office selected Director Hwang as a speaker for the "2026 Gyeonggi Education Transformation Celebrity Invitation October Lecture Series" to be held at the South Building's Grand Hall on the 28th.

Director Hwang is scheduled to deliver a lecture to 500 applicants including teachers, students, and parents on the theme "History as History, Education as Education." The provincial education office promoted the lecture to all schools and also invited participation from history education research groups, history and social studies teachers, and teacher learning communities.

However, some teachers and parents have raised concerns about Director Hwang's past statements on history and demanded instructor replacement. Director Hwang had stirred controversy by stating, in the process of emphasizing America's responsibility regarding the Korean War, that it was a "war caused by the United States."

Director Hwang has responded to the remarks by stating that he has never denied North Korea's invasion of South Korea and that his lecture content is being subjected to "devil's editing," having statements taken out of context.

The controversy has also spread to teachers' organizations and political circles. The Korean Federation of Teachers' Associations has demanded the cancellation of the lecture, stating that not only the speaker's expertise but also historical accuracy and political neutrality should be sufficiently reviewed. The Korean Teachers' Union has also urged the disclosure of the instructor selection process and verification criteria, and called for a review of the lecture.

The Democratic Party in Gyeonggi Provincial Council also held a press conference on the 23rd demanding the withdrawal of Director Hwang's invitation. On the same day, at the National Assembly Education Committee's state audit, Education Minister Choi Kyou-jin also mentioned the need to reconsider the lecture.

The provincial education office maintains its position to proceed with the lecture as planned. The provincial education office insists that this lecture is not intended to instill a particular view of history but to address the importance of history education, and maintains that Director Hwang is not a matter for replacement.