The 4B movement and radical feminism

Domestic violence and an unequal distribution of labor in South Korea were motivating factors behind the rise of what is known as the 4B feminist movement.  In this episode of Human Rights Magazine, Lily Wang explores the expansion of 4B beyond Korea, and the extent to which it may or may not have an impact on the protection of women’s rights.

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Transcript

Intro by Derek MacCuish:  Domestic violence and an unequal distribution of labor in South Korea were motivating factors behind the rise of what is known as the 4B feminist movement.  In this episode of Human Rights Magazine, Lily Wang explores the expansion of 4B beyond Korea, and the extent to which it may or may not have an impact on the protection of women’s rights.

Host Lily Wang: Hi everyone. Welcome to today’s episode. Following the 2024 election and Donald Trump’s return to office, conversations on social media saw a renewed wave of feminist voices.

Born in South Korea, the 4B Movement is built on four radical principles--no dating, no sex, no marriage, and no childbearing. At its heart, it challenges us to see refusal itself as resistance, especially in societies where traditional relationships often reinforce unequal power dynamics.

Nearly a decade after #MeToo, the struggles remain. The #MeToo movement is a global campaign against sexual harassment and assault, where survivors publicly share their experiences to challenge silence, demand accountability, and push for cultural and systemic change. However, until now, from unequal pay and weak protections for working mothers, to inadequate responses to harassment and the ongoing marginalization of queer communities, feminism is still unfinished business. And it is against this backdrop that 4B movement is entering a new, global phase.

What started as a localized feminist response to South Korea’s deeply patriarchal norms has now resonated far beyond its borders. By rejecting roles tied to marriage and childbearing, the 4B Movement pushes us to ask a deeper question: what does it mean to live freely, with dignity, outside of expectations imposed on women?

This isn’t just about saying “no.” It’s about rethinking what society calls a “good woman” or a “successful woman.” It’s about examining issues long ignored, from systemic harassment to the lack of protections for marginalized groups. And most of all, it’s about opening space to imagine something different: freedom, dignity, and choice, on our own terms.

So today, we’re going to dive into the global rise of the 4B Movement, and what it tells us about the unfinished work of feminism. This podcast will explore the global resonance of the 4B Movement across different regions.

Host: Our first speaker is Professor Chantal Mallie from the Simone de Beauvoir Institute at Concordia University. In her talk, Professor Mallie highlighted the significance of the 4B movement. She emphasized that the movement has struck a chord in the United States, particularly considering the 2024 election and Donald Trump’s return to office. According to her, the 4B framework resonates strongly in a society currently experiencing a pronounced shift to the political right.

Chantal Mallie: “For the 4B movement, well, you know, what I read is that it really rang a bell in the US when Trump was reelected last November. Many women started to identify, you know, as 4B. But in Canada, the context is different. If you look at data on equality between men and women, Canada is doing well for several reasons because of our social programs. For example, let's say in Quebec, you have affordable daycare for babies and children. You have maternity leaves that are paid by the state. So, you have several programs, a number of laws that have been voted that have resulted in like, you know, not being totally like, you know, equal between men and women, but moving towards more equality. if you look at equality measures between men and women, like salaries, well, you know, the US, they used to do well. And now, you know, since the last fifteen years, they're not doing well at all. So, they're losing ground in terms of progression of equality between men and women. So, they've become a very conservative society. Women are not gaining rights, they're losing rights. And the abortion issue is just an illustration of that. The right to decide if you are going to have a child or not has been taken.”

Host: Professor Chantal Mallie also pointed out many problems in the current global situation. In the United States, the social structure often prevents women from fully focusing on their careers and broader contributions to society. It also highlights the persistent issue that women are frequently forced to choose between family and career.

Chantal Mallie: Principles are like certainly, I guess, know, easy to apply. You don't need a like, you know, a movement behind you to decide that you are not going to marry, you are not going to date men, you are not going to have children. So, I mean, you just do it. I think many career women, you know, in the US might just be applying these principles because that's how it is. And they have like, you know, they have good jobs, they have, you know, excellent education. So now what are they gonna do with their life? Are they gonna like to try to maximize on their degrees and the education they've received or are they going to be in a position where they will have to sacrifice their education because they are going to have children? So you see, I think many women are deciding for themselves, they will have a better life if they just go, you know, with their education and maximize their like a profile, their career profile by being available, by being single, by not being attached and not having children because if they prioritize family over career, they will not be able to success as if they only prioritize career.

In the US there's an assumption that if you have children, you cannot be like working full time. Look at, don't know, I don't like, I'm not American, but what I know is that in the American education system, like at school, parents have to be available during daytime for children because there are all kinds of activities. They have social activities for children. They have like four o'clock soccer time. And here comes the name soccer moms. So there's like this idea that if you are a mother, you have to be available for your children. But if you're career woman, how can you manage? Because like the conditions are created for mothers in the US make it very difficult to be fully focused on your career. So I think many young women understand that it's a choice. If you go with the children, then, you will take the mom's track. You will have to take the mom's track for your career, which is like, you won't be able to climb the corporate ladder and get the best jobs. You'll get, you know, jobs, but they might be part-time or like, you know, you might even be out of the labor market for five or ten years. And some women, you know, who have just got a degree, like been through good education, good schools, they think, wow, what's my choice? I prefer a career because if I take the mom's track, then my career won't be as good. So I would say that both have advantages and disadvantages. 

Host: Professor Chantal Mallie also compared the traditional feminist movement and the new movement. 

Chantal Mallie: The traditional movements are more structured. But the problem is that they require a lot of funding, money. So, money is an issue. If you have paid people, if you have an office, if you have like, you know, a phone line, if you're providing services, okay, because this is also something you need to consider that in the traditional women's movement, there are many groups that are, have like, you know, a purpose that is offering services. For example, shelters for women who are victims of domestic violence. You know, there's a network of shelters in Montreal. You have shelters in many locations. So there's no other way to do it. You know, it's a shelter, it requires staff people, it requires a location, it requires that you have like board members. But governments give generously for these services that they can survive over a long period of time, in Canada, the governments both provincial and federal, they support women's movements, too. They have special envelopes for these women's movements. Okay, but the problem is that these traditional women’s movements are vulnerable to government decisions. 

Financial vulnerability is a big issue for these traditional women's movements. But on the other side, they are able to give services and they have proven that they were able to survive over time. So, there are many of these organizations that have been around for about 50 years. Also in this traditional women's movements, you have women's movements with a special interest. I'm talking about the like, know, First Nations women's movements. So, in Canada and in Quebec, you have like, you know, the Native Women's Association, you have First Nation Women of Canada, these groups are operating around a very specific issue. So, what they do is that they defend Native women's interests, they defend their agenda, they provide services for Native women. So, you see, and they've been in operation for more than 40 years in Quebec and in Canada. So that's the good part of these traditional women's organizations that they can survive over a long period of time. And so, they can also evolve in their agendas. 

But their challenge is that they need to recruit younger members because these groups were founded in the 1980s for most of them. And I guess now they've been pushed by a generation of women, but now, like, you know, these women are about to, like, you know, to die or to retire. So, they need to attract a younger generation in order to be able to, like, you know, maintain their existence. So, you see, while younger women might identify more with fourth wave feminist movements are more that are lighter in terms of structures that are more like, know, they don't require a lot of money. They do require like, you know, debt. Some people build something and then like it's easy to run these movements. But at the same time, their ability to bring social change might be kind of less strong than the traditional women's movements. Although, you know, I think if we look at how the MeToo movement has, you know, changed the world, has spread all over the world with just with technology and with women liberating, you know, their personal stories and sharing their stories on websites. I mean, you know, this is an example of something that is extremely powerful that has changed the world with very, very minimal infrastructure. And so, I mean, you know, I must, I must admit, if I think about that, you know, I must say that, yeah, it's kind of, you know, it's, it's possible in 2025 to bring big change through like that kind of strategy. 

Host: Over the years, the 4B movement has resonated within feminist groups around the world. It has provided a new framework for thinking about gender, autonomy, and resistance. However, the question remains: can 4B develop into a globally recognized feminist movement, or will it remain a more local, contextual form of resistance? A key factor in considering the origins of the 4B movement and its broader role and impact is the prevalence of sexual harassment and domestic violence. Many women’s movement groups have been combating these issues, and it is against this backdrop that 4B emerged. 

To explore this, I spoke with Sylvia. She’s a former co-founder of a Mandarin-speaking feminist group in London, and she shared her experiences with me in a personal capacity. 

Her group was built around the principle of FLINTA*--that’s an acronym for Female, Lesbian, Intersex, Non-binary, Trans, and Agender individuals, with the asterisk standing for all non-cis male identities. Sylvia explained that adopting this framework wasn’t just symbolic; it came from a real need. She told me that there are plenty of open-mic events around the world that welcome everyone. But at least at that time in London, there really weren’t Mandarin-speaking feminist groups that were FLINTA* centered. When I asked her about the group’s founding intention, she told me that they wanted a space where people could express themselves freely--without constantly negotiating the gaze of patriarchy or authority.

For Sylvia, this commitment was personal. She had faced harassment in other feminist spaces before, and that experience shaped her drive to create something safer. But safety, she emphasized, was about more than just physical protection, she thinks that It’s about forgetting self-monitoring. About being in a space where you don’t have to perform strength or justify your existence, and where you can set emotional boundaries. 

The group’s activities ranged widely--from discussions of feminist theory and migration to questions of care and personal growth. As Sylvia told me. Many of their topics had nothing to do with men. What mattered was having a space where they could speak without compromise.” These performances, and the group’s broader work, connected with the 4B spirit, questioning heterosexual and patriarchal norms, and critiquing narratives built around cis male desire. 

So, I asked Sylvia about her view of 4B: what does she think of the 4B framework? Her answer was thoughtful, to her, 4B is a way of thinking, not a rulebook. She told me she respected communities who commit fully to the 4B. But she also worries about what she called a growing “culture of rigidity.” 

She thinks that in some circles, there’s intense pressure to strictly follow rules like ‘no dating’ or ‘no sex.’ It starts to feel less like a personal choice and more like a behavioral requirement.” For Sylvia, this kind of rigidity risks alienating allies. “Some people might not be able to, or simply choose not to, follow all four principles. Maybe they commit to not marrying or not having children, but that doesn’t mean their resistance to patriarchy is any less serious.” Instead, she stressed her own priority: creating safe, inclusive spaces, especially for Mandarin-speaking feminists. Generally, to say, her priority isn’t to force women to abandon romantic relationships. It’s to ensure they can speak freely, heal together, and organize without fear.” And for Sylvia, that’s the heart of feminism, not strict lifestyle codes, but solidarity and emotional safety. 

Host: Despite problems like domestic violence and sexual harassment, 4B also sparked many problems in the different narratives. For more global perspective, and more interdisciplinary studies. 4B movement was also resonated with art and everyday life. It can really become a global perspective that is still very much debated. 

My third speaker is Man Wu, she is an independent filmmaker, curator, and theater practitioner based in Beijing. Much of her work focuses on queer narratives and expressions. Beyond film, she also founded a theater project called Unheard Echoes. This project is currently touring European cities. Wu uses verbatim theater, which is a way of drawing directly from people’s words, and in her project, she recounts the history of resistance among queer women. The project invites queer feminist activists to share their lived experiences. Wu told me her hope is that, by using theater, these voices can return to public spaces and spark new imaginaries for action, especially under repressive conditions. 

When Wu talks about 4B, she said that the 4B movement puts too much emphasis on ‘women’ as an identity, while overlooking the intersections between gender and broader social structures. When she creates queer-related work, she doesn’t approach gender from a binary perspective. The movement’s focus on cisgender women risks marginalizing non-binary and transgender experiences. At the same time, Wu acknowledged the value of 4B’s critical ideas, especially in societies where women’s agency has long been suppressed. It reminds women that marriage and relationships are choices, not obligations imposed by society.

Wu also pointed out that, some of the discourse around 4B carries a middle-class bias. She said that in China, many feminist actions aren’t about resisting heteronormativity, they’re about surviving systemic violence. For women on the margins, resisting heterosexual norms isn’t their most urgent concern, but survival is.

She pointed to cases that sparked public outrage in China, like the infamous bride price rape case, where a man raped his fiancée after she refused sex before marriage. Despite a guilty verdict, thousands online still argued she had “owed” him sex because she had accepted the bride price. Wu told me: The freedom to say ‘no’ is not equally available to everyone. For some women, marriage isn’t just a choice; it’s a survival strategy. 

Rejecting marriage or childbearing may look liberating, but for many, it’s a costly luxury. In her words, 4B works as spiritual resistance within middle-class circles, where it can be a personal political choice. But for women in rural or economically disadvantaged areas, rejecting these norms can mean social exile or instability.

Wu also stressed how queer feminist practices operate under authoritarian restrictions. For many independent cultural workers, survival means going underground, through guerrilla-style theater, discreet film festivals, or other hidden spaces. Wu said that they do not open protests, it is about creating their own narrative spaces within narrow gaps. Limited as they are, they still carry the potential to spark new imaginaries. As for whether 4B could take root in China, Wu remains open-minded. She thought it might go through a process of localization, not just repeating its radical slogans but transforming into a resource of ideas that resonates in the Chinese context. Even if spaces for open expression are limited, ideas like 4B can ripple through public discourse. If it gets more women to ask: Why must we marry? Why must we raise children? Why must we do housework? It can still enlighten.

Thank you for listening to today’s episode. The conversations around the 4B movement remind us that feminism continues to take many forms across different contexts. As always, the question is not just how these ideas travel, but how they can create safer, more inclusive futures for us all.