COMMUNIST SEX CULTURE AND LEWD MARXIST FEMINISTS : The Protestant Response to the 16th Seoul Queer Culture Festival

Abstract

In 2015, South Korea held their 16th Seoul Queer Culture Festival – a festival that includes Seoul’s official Pride Parade - after several events that nearly acted as roadblocks to the event. These roadblocks were largely due to the Protestant Lobby’s concerted effort to block the events through several actions such as using their numbers to overwhelm politicians and administrative offices, massive counter protests, and an expansive media blitz. This research is an attempt to both create a narrative of numerous sources and uses a modest case study to briefly discuss the dynamics of a social movement and its countermovement. Sources used include various journals from academic databases, newspaper articles that include first-hand accounts of the events, and press releases from the sides of both queer organizers and Protestant organizers. This research has found that the Protestant Lobby utilized the aforementioned methods (of overwhelming politicians, utilizing media, etc.) and acted as an anticipatory social movement – one that acted before the announcement of the 16th SQCF, and continued to exhibit actions of a countermovement In order to get a more complete, comprehensive study – future research will need to directly interview participants, organizers on both sides, and officials involved in decision making.