1800 Million Won Raised for 'Joo Ho-min's Special Teacher'... "Please Use It for Seoi Elementary, Not Me"

Raised 18 Million Won in 6 Days, Early Closing
"I Will Cover Lawyer Fees and Others on My Own"

Webtoon artist Joo Ho-min has filed a lawsuit against a special education teacher in charge of autistic children on charges of child abuse, and more than 18 million won was raised from all over the country within a week to support the teacher.

Webtoon artist Ju Homin
Photo by Yonhap News

According to the education sector on the 22nd, Professor Ryu Jae-yeon of the Department of Special Education at Nasaret University conducted a fundraising campaign from the 29th of last month to the 4th of this month to support the legal fees for the teacher who was sued by Joo.

The fundraising campaign was publicized through blogs and social networking services (SNS), raising a total of 18.44 million won in 7 days, and is now closed. Earlier, Professor Ryu stated when starting the fundraising on the 29th of last month, "Regardless of the court's decision, I want to give strength to the teacher who is enduring a difficult process," explaining the purpose of the fundraising.

Professor Ryu added, "Although I know the teacher politely declined early on, I believe this issue is everyone's problem and that we have a public duty to resolve it," and said, "It does not feel like someone else's problem," noting that special education teachers from all over the country showed support. He also added, "General citizens, school principals, supervisors, parents, civil service exam candidates, and disability-related organizations also participated."

Webtoon artist Joo Ho-min has filed a lawsuit against a special education teacher in charge of autistic children on charges of child abuse. Meanwhile, more than 18 million won was raised from all over the country within a week to support the teacher.
[Photo by Ryu Jae-yeon, Professor of Special Education at Nazareth University Blog]

Initially, Professor Ryu explained, "I expect the legal fees to be around 7 to 10 million won," and the fundraising goal was 3 to 5 million won. However, donations quickly accumulated, far exceeding the initially expected amount, leading to an early closure of the campaign.

In response, Professor Ryu stated, "This fundraising falls under 'relief goods, condolence money, or other similar funds recognized by social norms' in terms of target, method, and purpose, and there is no legal issue," and added, "The funds will be delivered to Teacher A, who is still a defendant."

Meanwhile, it is reported that Teacher A expressed to Professor Ryu's side the intention to use the donations for fact-finding related to the Seoicho Elementary School teacher's extreme choice incident. Having recently been reinstated and receiving a salary again, Teacher A explained that they can now cover legal fees on their own.

Teacher A also told Professor Ryu, "If it were not for the Seoicho incident, (my case) would not have come to light, and I would likely have faced a difficult situation," and added, "I hope the current educational situation, not just special education or my own issue, will be resolved fairly."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.