Donald Trump's victory over Kamala Harris in the recently held US Presidential Elections 2024 has irked countless female citizens of the country. 54% of women voters backed Vice President Harris but Republican Trump managed to become 'POTUS 47' as he was backed by at least 56.5 % of American men. The men's decision to rally behind Trump, known for his chauvinistic outlook including on the matter of abortion, has not gone down well with their liberal female counterparts who are considering a South Korean 4B movement-inspired fightback.
The 4B was a feminist movement that shook South Korean society in the second half of the 2010s before gradually losing its relevance. However, it was a landmark in the history of modern South Korea as it exposed gender inequality prevalent in the country's culture and society.
Meanwhile, there is no denying the fact that the norms and familial values of the United States and South Korea are poles apart. So how can the women in Washington, Alabama, Las Vegas, and countless other US cities possibly adapt the 4b movement to challenge the Trump administration? Feel free to draw your conclusions after understanding about the women's movement in some detail.
What is South Korean 4B movement?
Like most other societies, childcare and household chores largely remain the responsibility of women in Korea. Rising inflations, meanwhile forced women across strata of life to look for employment all the while administering domestic chores. Thus, their responsibilities were doubled with little to no room for relaxing.
In 2016, a woman was murdered near a Seoul subway station by a man, who claimed to be upset over being constantly ignored by women. Shocked to the core, Korean women, particularly those in their 20s, arose against the gender equality that existed in the country. The gender-biased treatment towards women, the pay gap, revenge porn, and digital sex crimes also became talking points.
As the name indicates, the movement highlighted 4 words beginning with 'b'-- “bi” in Korean, which means “no”. They were:
- Bihon (not getting married to men)
- Bichulsan (no childbirth)
- Bisekseu (denying men sex)
- Biyeonae (no dating)
Life is better off without men -- the Korean women told their sisters through the movement. A 4B activist's decision to "disengage from men" wasn’t an act of vengeance but about putting herself first, the CNN report said.
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4B movement in United States: The story so far
Following the election results, many young women in the US took to social media platforms such as TikTok and X to discuss launching a 4B movement in the US. According to a CNN report, it is far too early to tell whether the 4B movement may become a popular movement in the US. But there are confusions about how can already married women, homosexuals, and queers be active participants in the movement.
