A South Korean feminist movement known as "4B" — in which women swear off sex, childbirth, marriage and dating — surged in the U.S. in the hours after Donald Trump won the presidential election.
The feminist movement, which gained traction in South Korea in 2018 during "MeToo" accusations in response to misogyny, gender discrimination and violence against women, is now emerging as a form of protest against Trump's victory.
The movement represents the four new "no's" — "bi" in Korean — against dating men (biyeonae), marrying men (bihon), having sex with men (bisekseu), and giving birth (bichulsan).
Young men turned out in force for the former president, who defeated Vice President Kamala Harris during a campaign in which she made restoring reproductive rights a critical part of her message.
Besides appointing the Supreme Court Justices who ended women's reproductive freedoms in Roe v Wade, Trump repeatedly referred to women in his campaign as stupid. He called Nikki Halley a "birdbrain," referred to Harris as "mentally impaired" and "retarded," and to former GOP Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney as "dumb." He falsely characterized articulate superstar Beyonce as so spacey she couldn't quite remember the name of the candidate she was endorsing when the singer spoke up for Harris.
In addition, Trump controversially vowed to "protect" women whether they "like is or not," chillingly evoking his boast about "grabbing women by the p--sy."
In the hours after the election, Google searches for 4B spiked and the hashtag exploded on X.
"Ladies, we need to start considering the 4B movement like the women in South Korea and give America a severely sharp birth rate decline: no marriage, no childbirth, no dating men, no sex with men," @lalisasaura wrote on X the day after the election.
"We can't let these men have the last laugh ... we need to bite back," the posting said.
Ladies, we need to start considering the 4B movement like the women in South Korea and give America a severely sharp birth rate decline:
— 🖤 (@lalisasaura) November 6, 2024
- no marriage
- no childbirth
- no dating men
- no sex with men
We can’t let these men have the last laugh… we need to bite back
Trump critic @solitasims said "it's time to close off your wombs to males."
"This election proves now more than ever that they hate us & hate us proudly. do not reward them," the posting said.
Ashli Pollard, 36, has been a part of the 4B movement for two years and has stopped dating men. After the election, she called on other women to do the same.
Pollard said she's seen the movement gain steam on TikTok since election day.
"I saw four back-to-back videos of young women saying we have to start the 4B movement here," she told USA Today. "4B starts today. We have to be doing this immediately. Men don't look out for us; we don't look out for them."
