On 13 May, a woman in Korea ate a piece of chocolate.
Normally, for reasons I don’t have to explain, this wouldn’t make front-page news.
But this single act has sparked a massive backlash from men’s rights’ activists, who are absolutely seething with rage over how that woman ate the piece of chocolate.
Now, they are trying to ban her from television.
Here’s what happened.
Jaejae Eats Chocolate, Internet is Outraged
On 13 May, Jaejae, a South Korean television and YouTube personality, ate a piece of chocolate on the Baeksang Arts Awards red carpet while posing for photographs.
Men’s rights activists were outraged by the way she held the chocolate just before eating it, as it looked liked a pinching gesture.
This pinching gesture, as some of you may know, resembles how one would make fun of a man with a small penis, and thus, some men’s rights activists perceived Jaejae’s snack time on the red carpet to be “anti-male”.
Since the incident, netizens have started an online petition to ban Jaejae from television. The petition has garnered over 86,000 signatures at the time of writing.
In response, the producers of Jaejae’s talkshow, “MMTG”, released a statement, clarifying that the eating of chocolate was meant to be a joke.
They had planned for Jaejae to carry a snack pack in place of a clutch, so she could take out a snack and eat it while on the red carpet.
Ads With Pinching Gesture Taken Down
Since then, other companies have removed ads that feature the pinching gesture, and also apologised for doing so, reported The Korea Herald.
These ads include one for for camping items and another from an online fashion store.
Upset With Method of Picking Up Fried-Chicken
Another ad which ruffled the feathers of some men in Korea was a fried chicken ad, as some felt that it was an “unnatural” way to pick up fried chicken.
Others, argued, however, that this was a perfectly normal way of eating chicken, and that they were just being sensitive.
What might have triggered these activists is the fact that the gesture resembled the logo of Megalia, an online feminist community which is now defunct.
Long History of Netizens Bashing Celebs For Supporting Feminism
According to Koreaboo, netizens in South Korea often bash celebrities for supporting the feminist movement.
Celebrities who have supported the movement have had to deal with everything from male idols destroying their merchandise to feeling forced to delete Instagram pics demonstrating their support of feminism.
Some believe this feeling of antipathy towards feminists stems from South Korea’s conservative values, as the country has long been a patriarchal society with women expected to perform certain roles, according to Koreaboo.
As a result, the feminist movement is often misunderstood as male hate.
While small-penis jokes aren’t funny and are actually an impediment in our march towards gender equality, the fury with which netizens have responded to Jaejae’s act suggests that there’s something more at play.
What do you think?
Feature Image: AllKPop / Korea Times