Not an Insult: Establishing Feminism in a Country Still Afraid of It

Feminist’ flags waved on International Women’s Day in downtown Seoul, South Korea, March 8, 2024. Photo by Jung Yeon-je / AFP, published in Le Monde.

In South Korea, a nation globally recognized for its technological innovations, cultural influence, and rapid recovery from war and foreign occupation, one word continuously ignites hostility: feminism. It should be fairly simple – as feminism is a belief in and an advocate for gender equality – but in the sphere of the Korean people, the term has been weaponized and distorted beyond justifiable means, and in most cases, deliberately. As someone who deeply and proudly values women’s rights, watching the term “feminist” be hurled as an insult to women who rightfully exercise their right to freedom feels not only repulsive but disclosing. It rips off the band-aid that’s plastered over a painful and untreated truth: beneath the guise of a developed nation lies an unaddressed fracture built on top of decades of normalized misogyny, patriarchal expectations, and institutional silence. 

South Korea today finds itself at a crossroad, one defined by a twisted but nevertheless necessary national conversation about gender. And this conversation is delayed – sometimes even resisted – but increasingly impossible to avoid. 

A Movement Misdefined 

On many South Korean online platforms, the word “feminist”, or “femi”, as it is commonly abbreviated, has come to mean anything but its actual definition. It has been repeatedly and incorrectly associated with extremism, man-hating, and social disruption. This phenomenon is not an organic or random misunderstanding – it is a socially and historically bolstered reaction.

A high-profile example is Irene Bae, a member of the well-known K-pop group Red Velvet. The singer faced intense backlash and was derogatively labeled a “feminist” in 2018 by male followers simply for having read a piece of feminist literature, the book Kim Jiyoung: Born in 1982 by Namju Choi. Naeun Son of the K-pop group Apink faced similar criticism for posting a picture of her cell phone case with the phrase “Girls can do anything” inscribed (C. Lee).  

Their experiences underscore how even minimal engagement with not even feminist ideas, but ideas of female empowerment can currently provoke societal condemnation and ostracization, warping innocent women into a villainizing stereotype. Although there has been defense for Bae and Son, such as Kim Hajin, a professional who stated “the entertainers don’t need to explain themselves, and no one should be criticized for being a feminist,” major Korean news outlets have framed this case of misogyny as a shameful scandal and the feminist labels as tarnishing to these women’s careers. Such portrayals by the media significantly contribute to the perpetuating distortion of feminism's true definition. 

Sharon Yoon, a Professor of Korean Studies at the University of Notre Dame, explains that “what we are seeing now is a very powerful backlash to all of the progress that feminist movements in Korea have made in the past few years.” 

These reactions have roots in South Korea’s rapid socioeconomic shifts. As young women increasingly set out to pursue higher-level education and build economically liberating careers, consequently delaying marriage and rejecting outdated gender roles, many men have responded with anxiety that eventually manifested into misogyny. It is apparent that female empowerment comes across, to some, as male displacement. 

This isn’t necessarily a phenomenon unique to South Korea – this is what happens in any society where effort for equality is perceived as a threat to traditionally upheld hierarchies. The key difference is that here, this hatred has been allowed to unrestrictedly metastasize online and offline,  feeding into political rhetoric and strengthening the preexisting social stigma. Many women now hesitate or completely repudiate being a feminist, not because they don’t seek or value equality, but because they fear harassment and isolation. Sira Park, a 30-year-old café owner in Seoul, told VICE: “I don't want to be called a feminist here in Korea. Maybe I'd say I'm a feminist if I wasn't in Korea, but there's a certain stereotype and stigma that comes with the title here” (S. Lee). Park’s reluctance is echoed by many in a pattern existent among numerous successful and independent Korean women who support women’s rights but avoid associating with the ‘F-word’ due to the potential for backlash. 

When reading a book or claiming basic empowerment incites public shaming, it further proves that feminism is not optional – it is the protection women need to live with dignity and opportunity.

Visible But Voiceless 

One of the biggest contradictions in South Korea’s gender landscape is its visibility problem. Korean women are publicized and capitalized off of everywhere, from music and art to business and social media – but still underrepresented in decision-making roles. Only a small fraction of the National Assembly are women, with only 56 women holding seats out of the 300 members as of April of 2024 (Jun). In parallel, 92% to 94% of executive roles are held by men in corporate leadership (Moon). 

When institutions lack female representation in such ways, they consequently lack the lived expertise needed to address and act against critical issues like workplace discrimination, digital sex crimes, childcare burdens, wage inequality, and gender-based violence – which are all at concerningly high rates in South Korea. 

It is not that South Korean women are short of capability; the fundamental cause of this exclusion is the continued push of male authority privileges given by institutional systems as the norm. Leadership pipelines often heavily rely on networks women are historically rejected from. Promotions and wages are unfairly affected by prejudices about marriage and childcare. Additionally, the refusal to provide workplace accommodations is justified as ‘maintaining maximal productivity.’ 

The outcome is a suffocating cycle: women are told to climb up higher, but are pushed down at every rung they reach for. This is not simply inequality – it is also structural inefficiency. A society that sidelines half of its population cannot, by any means, sustain long-term growth or stability.  

Silenced, But Showing Up

Despite this generational and deep-rooted stigma, a new rising generation of Korean women refuses silence. 

They are forming online communities.

They are calling out workplace harassment and domestic abuse.

They are demanding policy changes.

They are pushing back against stereotypes and fixed gender roles.

And perhaps most importantly, they are rejecting the idea that feminism is shameful.

For many, feminism is not an abstract and nominal principle but a survival strategy in a society where women’s safety and autonomy cannot be taken for granted. Haein Shim, the senior director of the Seoul-based feminist group Haeil, frames the ongoing struggles optimistically, stating that attempts to suppress women’s rights will “usher in a new stronger era of feminism in Korea” in response to the Yoon Seok-Yeol administration’s proposal to abolish the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family (Pham). It is evident that the feminist movement is not about defeating men. It is about dismantling systems that harm everyone – women, men, and all of those who fall outside traditional gender expectations. It is about reconstructing a society where equality is not perceived as a loss but as growth. 

The Difficult Conversation

Discussing feminism in South Korea is complicated because it refutes deeply upheld beliefs about identity, family dynamics, masculinity, femininity, and success. But these difficult conversations are the ones that matter the most. 

Korea cannot and will not continue to prosper while half of its population carries the weight of inequality on their backs alone. The nation cannot build a sustainable future paralleling other developed nations if fundamental concepts like feminism are treated as manipulative social contagions rather than a pathway to progress.

And this progress begins with establishing some clarity:

Feminism is not an insult.

Feminism is not extremism.

Feminism is the belief that women – and men – deserve the same dignity, opportunity, and humanity as anyone else.

Though this conversation is uncomfortable, it is necessary – because the alternative is stagnation. As a feminist, I am not afraid to say that South Korea deserves better, and should be better. Korean women deserve better. And this conversation, however strenuous, is the first step toward a country strong enough to face its own flawed history and a country brave enough to reshape its future.

Sources:

Photo:

Mesmer, Philippe. “South Korea’s Battle of the Sexes Is in Full Swing.” Le Monde, 1 Sept. 2024. Photo by Jung Yeon-je, AFP.

“Anti-Feminism Backlash On the Rise in South Korea.” France 24, 12 Aug. 2021, www.france24.com/en/live-news/20210812-anti-feminism-backlash-on-the-rise-in-south-korea. 

Jun, Jihye. “Number of Rookies, Women in 22nd Assembly Drops.” The Korea Times , 11 Apr. 2024, www.koreatimes.co.kr/southkorea/politics/20240411/election-no-of-rookies-women-in-22nd-assembly-drops. 

Lee, Claire. “Feminist Novel Becomes Center of Controversy in South Korea.” The Korea Herald, 27 Mar. 2018, www.koreaherald.com/article/1627626.  

Lee, Sunny. “Why Korean Women Are Hesitant to Label Themselves Feminists.” VICE, 27 July 2024, www.vice.com/en/article/korean-women-feminists/. 

Moon, Joonhyun. “Korean Workplace Still Seen as ‘Men’s World’ Despite Rise in Female Executives.” The Korea Herald, 13 Oct. 2025, www.koreaherald.com/article/10592292#:~:text=The%20survey%20also%20shed%20light,Related%20Stories. 

Pham, Hannah. “Misogyny Helped South Korea’s President Win - Now Feminists Are Fighting Back.” openDemocracy, 26 Mar. 2022, www.opendemocracy.net/en/5050/misogyny-helped-south-koreas-president-win-now-feminists-are-fighting-back/.