(Image via business-standard.com)

Editor: Alexandra D’Eon

Email: adeon@umassd.edu 

The 4B Movement in South Korea, also known as the “Four No’s” Movement, is a feminist movement that rejects dating, marriage, sex, and childbirth. It emerged as a radical response to deeply entrenched patriarchal norms, economic pressures, and systemic gender inequality in South Korean society.

The “4Bs” stand for:

1. No Dating (비연애)

2. No Sex (비성교)

3. No Marriage (비혼)

4. No Childbearing (비출산)

The election season reignited conversations about reproductive autonomy and women’s rights, particularly as states across the U.S. continued to implement restrictive abortion laws and debate over healthcare access intensified. 

Many young feminists saw parallels between their struggles and those faced by South Korean women, prompting a cross-cultural embrace of the 4B principles in the United States.

Women are now taking to social media in the United States to advocate for a 4B movement in response to the election results.

Haein Shim is one of the activists from South Korea who participated in the protests and advocated for the 4B movement. In an email to The Guardian, she wrote, 

“What we want is not to be labeled simply as some man’s wife or girlfriend, but to have the independence to be free from the societal expectations that often limit women’s potential to be fully acknowledged as human beings.” 

Women feel more unsafe than ever. During his presidency, Trump appointed three Supreme Court justices who contributed to the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022, limiting access to abortion in many states. These abortion bans place pregnant people in extremely dangerous situations, as in some cases, it is a federal crime for a doctor to intervene during a medical emergency.

The birth rate in the United States has been steadily falling for years. In 2023, it reached a record low. According to the CDC, “The general fertility rate in the United States decreased by 3% from 2022, reaching a historic low. This marks the second consecutive year of decline, following a brief 1% increase from 2020 to 2021. From 2014 to 2020, the rate consistently decreased by 2% annually.”

Although Trump has vehemently denied being attributed to Project 2025, since the announcement of his win, his staff and supporters have come out and revealed that it was, in fact, the plan for Trump’s administration: “It is my honor to inform you all that Project 2025 was real the whole time.”

Project 2025 seeks to enforce the 1873 Comstock Act, effectively banning the mailing of abortion-related materials, including medication like mifepristone. This would create significant barriers to accessing abortion care nationwide. The plan also aims to criminalize doctors who perform medication abortions, further restricting women’s autonomy over their health choices.

Project 2025 proposes severe cuts to Medicaid and Medicare, disproportionately affecting women, especially single mothers and low-income households. It also threatens to remove expert recommendations for preventive care, potentially eliminating coverage for contraception, maternity care, and cancer screenings​.

Now, with Trump in office again, women are limiting their access to men. The misogynistic and violent comments from men online have done nothing to alleviate the fears women feel at this time.

Creators like Nick Fuentes have stated, “Your body, my choice, Forever.” 

Comments like this have spread like wildfire online. Comment sections of videos are filled with men telling women how choosing not to have sex with them won’t stop them. Men are practically admitting that they will commit sexual assault and rape on women that choose not to have sex with them. 

Why would women want to date men who don’t respect their choices or their bodies?

 How can we feel safe in a country that only sees us as valuable when we are mothers?

Donald Trump has been accused of sexual assault by at least 27 women. But this did nothing to deter his supporters from electing him back into office. This has made women throughout the country realize that people will put “economics” over their rights and safety. 

The 4B movement is a way for women to regain control of their autonomy. By displacing the value of men in their scope, they can dysregulate the values of a patriarchal society. 

There is still fear that men will retaliate against the movement, leading to more gender-based violence. Still, as the threat of these laws continues to loom over us, it is the only option some women see as potentially protecting them.