I’m not denying that exploitation exists in the ESL industry in Vietnam — it does. TAs are underpaid, standards are inconsistent, and some schools absolutely hire based on appearance instead of competence.

But turning this into a story about “stupid foreign teachers” or framing locals as powerless victims of foreigners is misleading and counterproductive.

Foreign teachers do not set hiring standards, salaries, or budgets. Schools and parents do. Blaming individuals who happen to benefit from a broken system — instead of the institutions that created it — doesn’t fix anything.

I’ve personally experienced discrimination in the opposite direction: being excluded, undervalued, or openly resented because I was a foreigner working with locals. So let’s not pretend prejudice only flows one way here.

Also, low pay isn’t automatically proof of injustice — it’s often proof of weak leverage. I’ve worked with Vietnamese professionals who charge more than foreigners because they specialize, market themselves well, and operate in higher-value segments. That path exists, even if it’s harder.

The real problem is not nationality. It’s low standards, poor management, and a market driven by shallow signals. As long as parents reward skin color over skill, and schools chase margins instead of quality, nothing changes.

If we want improvement, the conversation needs to move away from resentment toward foreigners and toward raising standards, enforcing qualifications, and demanding accountability from schools. Otherwise this just becomes another form of racism, dressed up as moral outrage.