Katherine H. S. Moon
Sex among Allies: Military Prostitution in U.S.-Korea Relations.
Columbia University Press, 1997. First printing. 0231106432 xiii/240 pages.
Softcover volume, measuring approximately 6" x 9", shows very light shelfwear. Interior has annotation in ink above title of the fourth chapter (annotation simply lists author, title, publisher, and publishing date of this book). Book is otherwise in fine condition.
"During the Korean war, American servicemen stationed in Korea enjoyed easy access to Korean prostitutes. After the war, military prostitution continued to flourish in South Korea as the sex industry had become an important feature of the U.S. military bases. By the late 1960s the seedy camptowns around the bases had become a source of friction between the United States and the Republic of Korea because of veneral disease, crime, and local antipathy. In 1971, tensions between the Korean and U.S. government came to a head after sharp reductions in U.S. troops around Asia. In a campaign to persuade the United States to maintain its military presence, the Korean government initiated a "Clean-Up Campaign" to stamp out veneral disease and extend control over prostitution; prostitutes were to become, in effect, unofficial ambassadors between the two nations. Katherine Moon examines the role prostitutes played in preserving the strategic relationship between Korea and the United States, focusing on policy and power conflicts, rather than culture, as the cause of institutionalized military prostitution."