LGBT News Korea (2025)

20/08/2025

The Anti-Discrimination Law is designed to prohibit across all areas of society and to provide effective remedies for victims, ultimately realizing substantive equality. One of the most contentious aspects of the law has always been whether to include “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” as protected grounds. These provisions have consistently faced fierce opposition from religious groups, and politicians have echoed such resistance, resulting in the failure to even initiate proper public discussion.

For sexual , the Anti-Discrimination Law is not merely about legal protection — it is a matter of basic survival. Many face the risk of being outed at work, fired, and left without any means of redress. The law represents a minimal safety net that allows sexual minorities to live with dignity and equality. And yet, despite tireless advocacy from some quarters, the law still has not been enacted.

Read the full article on the LGBT News Korea website: https://www.lgbtnewskorea.com/en/post/leeantidiscrimination-4

30/07/2025

In December, during a crisis of democracy triggered by Yoon Suk-yeol, and ***r people formed an unexpected and unprecedented alliance.

“Like many of you, farmers have always been a minority. Our struggles have always been lonely. Whenever prices rise, agricultural products are blamed. In every trade agreement, it’s agriculture that’s sacrificed. Our voices have been silenced, and we’ve been forced to endure endless sacrifice.”

“But at , things were different. You ran to our side without a moment’s hesitation. You offered unconditional solidarity with our fight. From the first Namtaeryeong protest to the second, and all the way until the moment Yoon Suk-yeol was removed from office, our friends from marginalized communities stood with us.”
- Words of Jeong Youngyi, Chair of the KWPA, spoken at the Seoul Q***r Culture Festival

Read the full article on the LGBT News Korea website: https://www.lgbtnewskorea.com/en/post/peasants-3

09/07/2025

On the night of December 3, 2024, President Yoon Suk-yeol abruptly declared martial law. Citizens blocked the military, which had attempted to blockade the National Assembly, so that the Assembly could successfully lift the martial law. Civil society responded by organizing the “BISANG Action for Yoon Out & Social Reform,” mobilizing large-scale protests and various actions until Yoon was removed from office in April. Marginalized groups—including women, + people, adolescents, people with disabilities, and migrants—gathered in the square not only to demand Yoon’s resignation but also to call for a fundamental transformation of the system that enabled his rise to power. ***r rights organizations launched the “Q***r Action for Yoon’s Resignation” and established a “Rainbow Zone” at the protest site. They pointed out how the regime that caused and justified the rebellion had long relied on suppressing q***r individuals. They highlighted the urgent need for politics free of hate and exclusion. The rally organizers, a coalition of civil society groups, introduced a “Pledge for Equality at the Square,” and participants actively worked to uphold it. This marked a distinct difference from the 2016 and 2017 impeachment protests against former President Park Geun-hye, where misogyny and youth hate had become significant issues.

On June 3, held its first presidential since the end of martial law. Citizens in the square demanded systemic change, equality, and life—with q***r people at the center. This article traces their fight to bring those voices into the election.

Read the full article on the LGBT News Korea website: https://www.lgbtnewskorea.com/en/post/21stelection-2

13/06/2025

I was in front of the National Assembly on December 7 and 14. The National Assembly's impeachment motion against President Yoon Suk Yeol was rejected on the 7th and passed on the 14th. As you may know, these protests were filled with and light sticks. The most moving of the songs that played there was "Into the New World" by Girls' Generation ( ).

The "Into the New World" of the 7th and 14th felt different. When the impeachment motion was rejected, the song had a sense of unshakable determination in it. When it passed, "Into the New World" was filled with victorious joy. At 5 pm on the 14th, as it was announced that the impeachment motion had passed, "Into the New World" played from the stage in front of the National Assembly—and in that moment, the song established its place as a symbol of the community, not just a K-Pop classic.

But how did this song start appearing in the protests? Many people find its root from the Ewha Womans University students' protests in the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye in 2016, but there are quite a variety of contexts. I summarized them here. ***r

*This piece was edited and translated from "How 'Into the New World’ became the song of the community,” which was published in Woojin Cha's "K-pop Strategy Lab" on December 16, 2024. It has been slightly edited to align with the topic of our website. The opinions and analysis in this piece reflect the views of critic Woojin Cha.

Read the full article on the LGBT News Korea website: https://www.lgbtnewskorea.com/en/post/intothenewworld

30/04/2025

There are currently many ***r active in . Some of them share their daily lives with their partners, others mainly film vlogs of their personal routines, and some listen to viewers’ concerns that are hard to talk about elsewhere and have discussions together. In addition, they expand Korea’s q***r content by creating various buzzwords, and in a Korean society rife with -phobia, they make q***r existence visible and actively raise their voices on social issues. Today, we would like to introduce some popular Korean q***r YouTubers who provide subtitles in English and other languages.

Read the full article on the LGBT News Korea website: https://www.lgbtnewskorea.com/en/post/youtubers-4

15/04/2025

On National Coming Out Day (NCOD), October 11, 2024, 11 same-sex couples living in filed a . The couples argue that local government offices rejecting their registrations solely because they are same-sex couples constitutes unjust . They are requesting the court to rectify this decision. This is the first large-scale lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the current Civil Code and administrative actions that deny marriage registrations to same-sex couples.

Read the full article on the LGBT News Korea website: https://www.lgbtnewskorea.com/en/post/marriagelawsuit-4

04/02/2025

Every ***r community in the world has its own , as communities in do, too. Various slangs come up and disappear along with generations and identities. This article introduces the slangs generally used in the # LGBTQ+ communities in Korea.

Read the full article on the LGBT News Korea website: https://www.lgbtnewskorea.com/en/post/slang-2

05/01/2025

Social minorities—including + individuals, women, people with , , , and precarious —have always taken to the streets to advocate for and . Even amid the human rights and democracy crisis sparked by the military coup, they carried their flags and participated in protests as they always have. In this urgently prepared article, we aim to shed light on the voices of social minorities, including LGBTQ+ individuals, during the military coup crisis.

Read the full article on the LGBT News Korea website: https://www.lgbtnewskorea.com/en/post/yoonout-2

20/11/2024

Novelist Park Sang Young, brings us “LOVE in the Big City,” now adapted into both a movie and a drama. To have more q***r stories available through various media, please check out the film and drama adaptations of LOVE in the Big City! ***r

Read the full article on the LGBT News Korea website: https://www.lgbtnewskorea.com/en/post/loveinthebigcity-5

10/11/2024

On July 18, the South Korean Supreme Court acknowledged the dependent status of same-sex spouses under the National Health Insurance. This marks the first official recognition of rights for same-sex couples in the country. Following the ruling, the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) extended dependent eligibility to other same-sex couples.

Read the full article on the LGBT News Korea website: https://www.lgbtnewskorea.com/en/post/nhis3-4

19/10/2024

In the drama the ***r relationship between Jeongyeon and Buyong seems to have been erased. Even if it's not, it does not promote the original comic’s popularity that is rooted in its q***r narrative. This can be seen as another form of “ .”

Read the full article on the LGBT News Korea website: https://www.lgbtnewskorea.com/en/post/heterobaiting-2

*The article is a translated version of “[Women Publicists] Stolen ‘Q***rness’,” written by Yeon Hye-Won for Korean media Women News specializing in women's issues.

15/08/2024

The OTT platform “ ” is actively producing its own ***r content. Check out the dating show “His Man,” the diverse stories of q***r couples in “Merry Q***r,” and the story of a married Korean le***an and their child in “Just Family.” ***r

Read the full article on the LGBT News Korea website: https://www.lgbtnewskorea.com/en/post/wavveq***rcontents-4

LGBT News Korea

20/08/2025

30/07/2025

09/07/2025

13/06/2025

30/04/2025

15/04/2025

04/02/2025

05/01/2025

20/11/2024

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15/08/2024

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