For my cultural project, I will investigate Korean weddings and as a component, I plan to investigate the way in which the LGBT community manages societal pressures to marry despite not being legally allowed to marry into a same-sex union. Therefore, as a precursor to my cultural project, this cultural post consists of research I came across while trying to understand issues that LGBT persons face in Korea and the relationship between the Korean LGBT community and the Korean government.
After witnessing the strides made around the world – and notably in Taiwan and in the United States – for the legalization and recognition of same-sex marriages, the LGBT community in South Korean hopes to obtain such recognition in their own country despite the judicial obstacle that faced the community in 2016 when a court in Seoul barred a same-sex couple from having a legal union recognized by the state (Shim). One notable political success for the LGBT community came from a 2017 Supreme Court ruling, mandating “the government to allow a lesbian, gay, bisexual, and trangender (LGBT) rights foundation to legally register as a charity, ending three years of the foundation’s leaders facing discriminatory rejection from multiple government agencies” (Human Right Watch). Nevertheless, the LGBT community continues to fight for equal treatment under the law, which has ‘criminalized homosexuality’: a Korean soldier was sentenced to jail for having consensual sex with another soldier of the same sex (Hu). Furthermore, the government is known to censor LGBT content and Christian groups represent a powerful lobbying power aimed at retaining the traditional definition of marriage (Manzella). Despite much opposition, the LGBT community continues to work hard to push for: same-sex marriage, more informative and inclusive sex education in schools, recognition, and equality (Shim).
Bibliography
Hu, Elise. “For South Korea’s LGBT Community, An Uphill Battle For Rights.” National Public Radio, Inc., 25 July 2017, https://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2017/07/25/538464851/for-south-koreas-lgbt-community-an-uphill-battle-for-rights.
Human Rights Watch. “South Korea: Supreme Court Affirms LGBT Rights.” Human Rights Watch, 4 Aug. 2017, https://www.hrw.org/news/2017/08/04/south-korea-supreme-court-affirms-lgbt-rights.
Manzella, Samantha. “How Gay-Friendly Is South Korea?” NewNowNext, 5 Feb. 2018, http://www.newnownext.com/lgbt-in-south-korea/02/2018/.
Shim, Elizabeth. “South Korea LGBT Activists Seek Equality in Conservative Country.” UPI, 11 Feb. 2018, https://www.upi.com/South-Korea-LGBT-activists-seek-equality-in-conservative-country/9831518386654/.
Comments