 Lee was given the name legal alias Ri Keisai and grew up being ashamed of his Korean background and due to his poverty.He revealed his Korean name to his classmates at his middle school graduation but had a strong desire to assimilate to the point of "hatred" towards Koreans and blaming his family's poverty on his parents' laziness.A state of mind which was only overcome by the intervention of a teacher, who raised the issue of anti-Korean discrimination, and the support and acceptance of Japanese friends.