6b4t - 6B4T

I wish the women jumping on the 4B bandwagon would understand these points: 

https://www.tumblr.com/femtoscooter/766688743202684928?source=share

https://youtu.be/b3KswFqFwt8?si=bidXJHUHJ32v5YcH

Anon, you are the one with a fundamental misunderstanding of 4B.

The post and video you sent me both cover the same topics, so I'll simply address them as one.

First, the author of that post is genderkoolaid. This is the same individual who posted a factually incorrect, misrepresentation of abuse statistics, in opposition to women's separatism. After my thorough explanation of how and why they were wrong, they chose to block me rather than admit to their misrepresentation.

All of this is to say, I am entirely unsurprised at their misrepresentation of another female separatist movement.

Sex strikes and 4B

Both posters erroneously compare the 4B movement to a sex strike. This is a fundamental misunderstanding of the movement. A sex strike is a transient protest meant to induce political or social change. For example, women may organize a sex strike to be concluded only once particular abortion protections are passed. (Like all protests, historical sex strikes have had mixed success.)

The 4B movement is not transient. Women who commit to 4B do not stop and later return to men. It is also not designed to directly induce a specific political or social change. The 4B movement was fundamentally a reaction to the intensely patriarchal culture in South Korea. The women who joined this movement did so because they believed that a life without men would be better than a life with men. They are not "withholding sex" until South Korean men stop being misogynistic; they have taken stock of their reality and decided that completely separating themselves from men is the only feasible reaction to their circumstances.

Yes, this focus on women's lives and circumstances, and the mass social rejection of the status quo, is likely intended to bring about social change (i.e., make men stop acting as they do), but this is a byproduct of the movement, not the origin.

All of this is to say: the 4B movement is not a means to an end, it is both the means and the ends.

But American women aren't doing it this way

Some are, some aren't. I'm entirely unsurprised that in a culture steeped in postmodernist theory, some women are attempting to distort the meaning of the movement. While I do not read Korean, I imagine this is frustrating to the woman who created and committed to 4B.

The continuation of this postmodernist pattern is unfortunate, and I truly wish the women who meant "sex strike" said so, rather than co-opting another movement. That being said, the mainstreamed discussion of female separatism is still positive as it brings women's attention to the possibility of alternate choices. (And having men's typical, misogynistic, violent reactions on display to the mere suggestion of such an action have been, as always, enlightening.)

Comparison with political lesbianism

Again, this is a misunderstanding of both the 4B movement and political lesbianism.

Political lesbianism is a practice where heterosexual or bisexual women falsely claim to be homosexual.

This is not the same as bisexual women practicing female separatism (i.e., only forming relationships or having sex with other women) while still indicating they are bisexual. It is also not the same thing as heterosexual women choosing to forgo all romantic and sexual relationships (e.g., major parts of the 4B movement).

The issue with political lesbianism is the homophobia inherent in intentionally claiming you are homosexual when you are not and the associated sentiments (e.g., claiming you can "choose" your sexuality).

The "male" loneliness crisis

The video repeats the misinformation concerning the "male" loneliness crisis/suggests men are uniquely affected by social isolation. Again, this is patently false. There is a general loneliness epidemic – one that affects women and men equally – not a male-specific crisis.

General rejection of female separatism

The rest of their commentary is the standard rejections of female separatism (sprinkled with pseudo-liberal buzzwords).

I'm not going to re-hash every defense and benefit of separatism here, but here are a few highlights:

The same post from above using data to show how female separatism would result in an unprecedented reduction in violence against women

Someone else's post about the difference in segregation and separation

Someone else's post about the framing of separatism as an option

My post about how many men are misogynistic

My post about the fatal effects of misogyny

Actually just the entirety of my #male violence tag and #patriarchal culture tag

In any case, the 4B movement is a form of female separatism. (And notably, not a conservative movement. It is specifically designed to disrupt the current status quo and prioritize women who are marginalized under conservative ideology.)

Conclusion

So, no, women do not need to "understand these points", because "these points" are either factually inaccurate, a misunderstanding of the terms and movements involved, or a simple rejection of feminist principles with a pseudo-liberal veneer.

References below the cut:

The history of sex strikes. (2019, May 16). BBC Three. https://www.bbc.com/bbcthree/article/1fc04f3e-3128-4be7-a78a-28ea31db4101

057. Lysistratic nonaction. (n.d.). Global Nonviolent Action Database; Global Nonviolent Action Database. https://nvdatabase.swarthmore.edu/category/gene-sharps-198/057-lysistratic-nonaction

Palmer, O. (2022, January 31). Political lesbianism remains a contentious debate in lesbian feminist circles—Is there a generational divide? Feminist Current. https://www.feministcurrent.com/2022/01/30/political-lesbianism-remains-a-contentious-debate-in-lesbian-feminist-circles-is-there-a-generational-divide/

Kuk, J., Park, H., & Norma, C. (2018, November 8). Radical feminism paves the way for a resurgent South Korean women’s movement. Feminist Current. https://www.feministcurrent.com/2018/11/07/radical-feminism-paves-way-resurgent-south-korean-womens-movement/

Lee, J., & Jeong, E. (2021). The 4B movement: envisioning a feminist future with/in a non-reproductive future in Korea. Journal of Gender Studies, 30(5), 633-644.

If it's not too much trouble, could you create or link to a masterpost of what you consider the must-reads on anti-pornography/anti-prostitution? For example books you've referenced by Andrea Dworkin.

Hello! I will put together a real master-list when I have time but here is a quick list of must-reads regarding the anti-sex industry movement in the West:

If you want a primer, read X-underrated by Catharine Mackinnon. It’s only six pages long but it lays out the entire anti-sex industry movement clearly. If you only have time for one link, it’s this one.

Andrea Dworkin: 

Books:

Woman Hating

Pornography: Men Posessing Women

Life and Death

Right Wing Women

Letters from a War Zone. Link for the chapter titled “Pornography’s Part in Sexual Violence”

After those I would recommend Last Days at Hot Slit, Intercourse, and Our Blood. Edited by both Dworkin and Mackinnon is In Harm’s Way: The Pornography Civil Rights Hearings (oral testimony of victims of pornography)

Article: Prostitution and Male Supremacy

Rebecca Whisnant: 

Book: Not for Sale: Feminists Resisting Prostitution and Pornography. This is a collection of essays by feminist writers (including Dworkin!), edited by Rebecca Whisnant and Christine Stark.

Articles: 

[Not] Buying It, Prostitution as Unwanted Sex. 

Pornography, Humiliation, and Consent (read this one)

But What About Feminist Porn? (only one “feminist” pornographer is discussed in detail but Whisnant’s analysis is widely applicable)

Julia Long: 

Book: Anti-Porn: The Resurgence of Anti-Pornography Feminism. This one is very theory-heavy, be warned.

Catharine Mackinnon:

Books: Only Words, Are Women Human?, and the chapter Francis Biddle’s Sister: Pornography, Civil Rights, and Speech from Feminism Unmodified

Article: OnlyFans is not a Safe Platform for “Sex Work.” It’s a Pimp

Sheila Jeffreys:

Books: The Industrial Vagina, The Idea of Prostitution, and Beauty and Misogyny (Chapters 4,5 and 8 especially)

Evelina Giobbe:

Book: Living with Contradictions. The chapter titled “Confronting the Liberal Lies about Prostitution” is a masterpiece.

Article: An Analysis of Individual, Institutional, and Cultural Pimping. Giobbe is also cited in Catharine Mackinnon’s article above.

Gail Dines:

Books: Big Porn Inc. and Pornland. Read both of these. Dr. Dines writes for the public and her arguments are easy to follow.

Video: Dr. Dines discussing Pornland

Margaret Baldwin:

Book: Prostitution and Pornography. Read the chapter titled “Split at the Root: Prostitution and Feminist Discourses of Law Reform”

Kathleen Barry:

Book: The Prostitution of Sexuality: The Global Exploitation of Women

Kate Millet:

Book: The Prostitution Papers (highly recommend, if you’re looking for a less academic piece)

Robert Jensen:

Book: Getting Off: Pornography and the End of Masculinity

Assorted Articles:

Kajsa Ekis Ekman interview, author of Being and Being Bought: Prostitution, Surrogacy, and the Split Self (disclaimer: Ekman is now a Russian propagandist, but the interview and book, which is also excellent, are almost 10 years old, so it’s up to you to read or not.)

Celia Smythe Anderson and Yolanda Estes, “The Myth of the Happy Hooker: Kantian Moral Reflections on a Phenomenology of Prostitutio.” Don’t be fooled by the jargon-y title, this piece is a breeze if you can find it (try an academic library)

Alexa Tsoulis Ray, “A Brief History of Revenge Porn”

Rae Story, interview with Francine Sporendo and “The Middle Classing of Prostitution: The Social Climb of the Sex Trade”

Sarah Ditum, “Why I changed my mind about porn”

Max Waltman, “Legal Challenges to Pornography and Sex Inequality in Canada and the United States”

Summer vagina tips🍓

- staying in a wet bathing suit breeds bacteria causing vaginal infections. Change out of wet bottoms as soon as possible

- going to the beach or pool after hair removal such as waxing is a big no, You should do it a couple days prior.

- sleep naked! Let your vagina breath!

- tight shorts and bottoms will irritate your vagina and keep sweat in

- you are much more likely to get a vaginal infection in the summer so up your intake of probiotics and do everything you can to let your vagina breath.

- have a ph balancing bath

- wash your vagina with warm water and your fingers gently everyday

- thongs will spread bacteria from your anus to your vagina especially when you’re sweaty so try not to wear them.

- wearing no panties is super ideal but for some of us it’s just not realistic and you just feel too moist so wear COTTON panties

Have a good summer and get some sun in your coochie☀️

CALL TO ACTION!

EDIT THE 4B MOVEMENT WIKIPEDIA PAGE

When the narrative is controlled by men, of course, the Wiki page is going to be awful and revisionist. So it is really up to us to edit the page. Right now the top editor is a Korean male. The article is semi-protected to prevent vandalism so you need to have an account to edit, your account needs to be at least 4 days old, and you need to make 10 edits.

1. Create a Wiki account if you have not done so.

2. Complete 10 edits (these can be basic edits that fix basic spelling or grammar errors.

3. Wait for 4 days

4. EDIT the hell out of that page.

While you are waiting please do research. I would recommend using Naver (Korean search engine), looking through the WOMAD website (they are credited with creating the movement), and reading over Wikipedia rules and guidelines.

SHARE THIS PLEASE

call us ugly to sell us shit!

women please take self defence classes and do not listen to men that tell you it’s futile to fight against a man. learning to defend yourself from men is not the same as when men fight each other, you are not trying to beat the shit out of him, you are trying to hurt him just enough so that you can get away. you can learn techniques to prevent a man from grabbing or choking you or how to escape a grip on you. men can knock you out or kill you if they land a proper punch but you can reduce the chances of that happening. even if you’re very small, it really doesn’t hurt to be able to dodge a punch from a man but it’s something you have to practice. it doesn’t matter how strong he is if he misses.

me af

i honestly feel so bad for anyone struggling w dysphoria trying to find detrans resources on here, the tags are filled w degrading fetish content