Few people were aware of 4B Movement before it got going following Donald Trump's election as the 47th US President. Neither is it American homegrown. It has its origin in South Korea way back in the mid-2010s before the #Me Too movement spread its roots in America in 1017. Both are feminist movements but there is a fundamental difference between the two. While #Me Too is a call for speaking up the experiences of sexual abuse, sexual harassment and sexual aggression, 4B is a complete rejection of men's role in women's life on account of the widespread societal misogyny.
Now what the 4B Movement actually is might cause many an eyebrow to raise everywhere. In Korean language the term bi (B) means 'no'. Thus the 4B is an expression of four 'nos'. Then what are the four 'nos'? The number one is, no dating with men; number two: no marriage; number three: no sex with men and number four: no childbirth. The bottom line is: making men irrelevant in women's life.
If the systemic misogyny in Korea was responsible for the germination of the 4B Movement there, this is also considered a reaction to the extreme. But low, 4B Movement has also a more virulent and radical version known as 6B4T. In addition to the four tenets on which the 4B Movement stands, this variant rejects beauty standards and boycott sexist products. Thus the proponents of this particular variant shave their heads and make their protest known to the male-imposed norm of female beauty in terms of long hair, hairdos, dress and ornaments.
That 4B Movement has taken the US by storm immediately after Trump's election victory is no surprise. American women now consider that men have voted against the right to abortion. The underlying theme is broader even. If a convicted felon is elected, as the followers of 4B movement perceive it, it is mostly because of the majority men's votes. The American society is not ready yet to recognise women as their equal and least of all accept a woman as their president. The message is therefore clear to women. #Me Too movement has not only lost its steam but is also much too inadequate to address their lack of liberty and gender equality.
Women's penchant for soft feminism must be replaced by a bold and aggressive version---one that they discovered on the Korean soil. It is like not seeking a cure for a disease but looking for its prevention. Prevention is a better way of dealing with the malaise but it also exacts a price. The question is in a far more liberal American society than that of Korea, are women ready to pay the heavy price or in other words, make such a sacrifice?
Korean men have called it an anti-men movement. Even American men are unlikely to extend generous support to such a movement. In a heterogeneous racial society white women have not been found wanting in aligning with white supremacy where race may prove to be a stumbling block on the way of forging a gender parity. Then there is the question of one of the fundamental rights---the right to choose.
If the movement sweeps the US, will women feel safer than before in terms of sexual aggression? No one can guarantee, particularly when the followers have openly declared total non-cooperation and a life separated from men. They are likely to lose sympathy of men who have always supported women's causes and felt there is a need to bridge the gender gap. With their back to the wall, Korean women took this extreme step in order to change the societal norm.
Well, mythical lore and natural selection of species tell a different story. The Cupid's arrow is not an invention for nothing. Instincts, emotions and passions cannot be denied even if one wants to. There is no dearth of people betraying no trace of passion for the opposite sex suddenly fall in love in the most unlikely manner. In case both are moon-struck, magic happens. So dismissal of the opposite sex may not work for all the 4B Movement followers.
US women should think of alternative measures to teach a lesson to the president-elect and his staunch supporters. Eccentric as Donald Trump may be and his lewdness already proved, his functions may be boycotted by women and where there is any women's function, he may be declared a persona non grata.
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