GRSJ224/Homophobia in Korea

Korea is accepted as a nation-state that is very homogeneous in both culture as well as race. Though with the progression of globalization, Korea has found itself accepting a larger influx of foreign immigrants, diversifying the cultures that can be found within its borders. With the rising trend of globalization and the tendency towards the melting of cultures, Korea has begun to accept the LGBT population into its society. However, Korean society is still a ways from the equalization of LGBT individuals' rights to those of Korean heterosexuals. In addition, while there has been significant progress in the acceptance of homosexuality in popular culture, being homophobic is still widely accepted and understood as a palpable outlook on the LGBT society to have as a Korean person.

History

Early History

Though there are few recorded observations of public homosexuality in Korea, kings like King Mokjong or King Gongmin were known to personally practice homosexuality, as well as accepting homosexuals in their courts. From this, it is observable that Korean Confucianism never outright condemned homosexuality, neither promoted homophobia, as kings were able to practice homosexuality without retribution. There also have been records of Korean nobles or Buddhist monks professing homosexuality, or admitting homosexual relations with other men. This further provides evidence that the history of homosexuality in Korea goes far back.

Recent History

Though the Korean psyche tends to attempt avoidance of mentioning a sensitive issue such as homosexuality and homophobia, as demonstrated in the manner homosexuality goes unmentioned in the South Korean Constitution, there has been progress towards the strengthening and understanding of homosexuality and homophobia. There are general discrimination protections put into place, and there have been further efforts to specifically remove clauses against homosexuality; however, on the same note, the Korean Christian community stepped up in outrage, and halted the attempt altogether by organizing rallies and writing letters of complaint. Otherwise, there is still a strong homophobic sentiment rooted in popular Korean society, such as public anti-homosexuality rallies in reaction to homosexual activities in events, which are for the most part acknowledged, sometimes powerful enough to uproot particular events or legislation in regards to homosexuals.

Emerging from the radical neo-liberal changes that swept from Korea during the Cold War and the capitalist values adopted from the US, the image of the entrepreneurial individual struggled with the traditional Confucian value of family to become the standard social unit in measuring society. The solid ideal of Confucian expectations to start a traditional family was challenged by the pursuit of the individual's happiness; this led to a greater emphasis on the individual's happiness, rather than the altruism of sacrificing the family. Naturally, this gave members of the LGBT community the opportunity to out themselves and express their own sexuality. However, Confucian and patriarchal ideals are still the dominant forces behind Korean society, leading homosexuals to establish an 'underground' culture of gay nightclubs and bars, as seen in Itaewon, a neighbourhood in Seoul. The stigmas attached to these underground communities are generally negative, seen as promiscuous and debauched, leading to the burgeoning of greater homophobia. In order to both conform to and challenge the Confucian value of family, as well as prevent homophobic labels being placed on them in suspicion, 'contractual' marriages are also being carried out between gays and lesbians, as they put up the guise of maintaining a family while negotiating for mutual practice of their own gay/lesbian affairs. To find these marriage partners, sites such as Our Wedding are used, which provide services to match willing marriage partners of the opposite sex.

In the Military

A recent challenge has been made regarding the largely homophobic military law of Korea, arguing for the right of homosexual soldiers to have equal rights as that of a soldier who is heterosexual. The military's previous outlook on homosexuality viewed it as 'reciprocal rape' and as such was banned by the military code. A ruling had been made to overturn this, stating that homosexuality was strictly a personal issue, unconcerned with public matters such as mandated Korean military service. However, this ruling has been recently challenged, and the court remains undecided.

Homophobia within the military remains a very present and dominant force. According to a Korean news article focusing on a homosexual's experience during his mandated military service, he was subjected to cruel treatment and discrimination, including being asked by superiors to 'provide proof' of his homosexuality in the form of a photo during sexual intercourse. Upon providing his superiors with the photo, the photo was quick to circulate within the military divisions, subjecting him to further discrimination. He was forced to undergo AIDS testing due to the social stereotype that 'gays are more likely to carry AIDS', which resulted him to become a victim of sexual abuse by his peers. This was also represented in other studies; homosexuality is deemed as a mental disorder, and this definition remains unchanged under the guise of maintaining fight (as homosexuals can discourage and shun heterosexual males because of their 'different sexual desires') and organizational military society. As such, homophobia in the military is very rampant, and very real, for both closeted and open homosexuals in the service.

In Law

As mentioned beforehand, the Korean Christian community is the biggest force behind halting any attempts to remedy discrimination against homosexuals or to grant equal marital statuses to homosexual couples. In the same note, the definition of "marriage" has been a largely debated one; in the official Korean dictionary, the definition of "marriage" is specifically tailored to that of a relationship between man and woman. Also, romantic "love" is defined as being between a man and woman. As such, homosexual marriage nor love is not acknowledged in the official dictionary of Korean language nor Korean constitutional law. As various studies have cited, both Korean societal values and romantic ideals exist in a dichotomy of the two standard genders; homosexuals, then, are ostracized as the abnormal 'third gender', as they are ignored in these official terms, it is accurate to say that their very existence is unacknowledged as anything but 'subhuman'.

In addition, homosexuality is portrayed as 'harmful' to minors, who are supposedly easily manipulated into 'becoming' homosexuals when exposed to homosexual behaviour. Thus, any media projection of homosexuality, or any websites pertaining to homosexuality are declared as being unethical and unfit for minors' consumption. There has been apparent controversy over this definition, with problems being brought to light that even being a homosexual person implies a perversion against societal norms and is morally unacceptable:

Even though the World Health Organization has determined homosexuality is not a mental illness or perverted fetish ... by deciding homosexuality as one of the factors determining whether material(s) are harmful to youth, clause 10 under the Constitution, the right to the individual's personal pursuit of happiness is violated, and promotes inequality due to sexual orientation, and also restricts freedom of expression and the right to knowledge about homosexuality.

Media Portrayal

Homophobia has largely remained a taboo within Korean media throughout most of popular media history. However, significant shifts in media portrayals of homosexuals have followed, especially since the coming-out of popular entertainer Hong Suk-Chun, as well as the popular film 'The King's Man' starring Lee Jun-Ki, who portrays a jester that has earned the romantic affections of the reigning king. A great influx of gay media has been produced, including indie queer films. Furthermore, there have been a greater number of mainstream media outlets that portray homosexual individuals or relationships to an extent. Examples include: "Respond 1997", a drama that had a gay character who had a crush on the male lead, web cartoons ("webtoons") such as "To Everyone, from Wanja", that detail the day-to-day life of a lesbian couple, and music videos like "Please Don't" by artist K-Will, depicting a love triangle between a straight couple and a gay man.

In the recent past, many popular entertainers had refused to star in any gay roles or produce music that might seem to portray homosexuality in fear of tarnishing their personal reputations, but this pro-LGBT shift has led to prominent public figures willingly accepting gay roles or producing homosexual content. The homophobic elements of popular Korean media has thus diminished significantly. However, there is still some reactive damage to individual figures who willingly take on these roles; a member of the idol group Infinite, Hoya, has previously expressed that he has gone through 'trauma' as people continued to accuse him of homosexuality in his own personal life.

For the most part, current media outlets seem to accept and condone homophobia to an extent. There are reports of ads being run by notable newspapers that outright condemn homosexuality, and thus support homophobic sentiments. These reported advertisements include homophobic remarks such as "What do you mean my daughter-in-law is a man, what do you mean, homosexuality?" and "My son turned gay after watching drama <Life is Beautiful>, if he gets AIDS, SBS (media corporation), take responsibility!" Moreover, respected figures in personal lives, such as teachers of young children and parents, are said to have made obvious anti-homosexual statements without being stopped or reported, with many parents disowning children that come out as homosexual.

LGBT groups have been seeking to make progress in the negative media portrayal of homosexuals, and has sought to alleviate negative connotations and stereotypes of the LGBT community, such as the assumption of homosexuals being sexually promiscuous and perverted. Though their opinions have been either ignored or quashed by other homophobic organizations, they have made some small victories as academic journals have examined, and continuously attempt to educate the next generation of youths on the groundless assumptions about being a homosexual. Although LBGT groups currently act as a small flow under the larger umbrella movement of the advocacy of human rights, it is not baseless to say that they will evolve to become a bigger, independent movement of their own in the future.

Public Attitude

Homophobic sentiments in Korea seem to have diminished with the aging of the next generation. As compared to 2007 with a mere 18% of the public tolerating homosexuality, 2013 statistics reported that this number increased to 39%, making it the country with the biggest difference between their 2007 and 2013 statistics. Further reinforcing this, statistics show that an overwhelming 71% of young South Koreans (ages 18-29) support homosexuality, where only 16% of older Koreans (over 50) did. This trend will likely continue, so thus there is a likelihood of Korean society turning more favourable towards homosexual individuals in the future.