A monocolor illustration of a young Korean man and woman, smiling with their arms thrown over each others' shoulders. Handwriting in the top left corner reads "Love in the Big City"
Love in the Big City: Heterobaiting and Queering Relationships in Korean Media

Korean queer media and literature do not need to conform to Western definitions of queerness to be meaningful. As I write for an Anglophone queer audience, I am reminded that this dialogue is not about proving the queerness of Korean media, but about expanding the scope of queer representation to include its many forms and contexts. Perhaps, rather than queering Korean media for the West, we should allow its stories to challenge and reshape what we consider queer altogether.

A monocolor illustration of a young Korean man and woman, smiling with their arms thrown over each others' shoulders. Handwriting in the top left corner reads "Love in the Big City"
Love in the Big City: Heterobaiting and Queering Relationships in Korean Media

Korean queer media and literature do not need to conform to Western definitions of queerness to be meaningful. As I write for an Anglophone queer audience, I am reminded that this dialogue is not about proving the queerness of Korean media, but about expanding the scope of queer representation to include its many forms and contexts. Perhaps, rather than queering Korean media for the West, we should allow its stories to challenge and reshape what we consider queer altogether.

A black-and-white Victorian-era photograph of two white AMAB people dressed as women.
Misgendering the Misgendered

I first witnessed a transgender character misgendered by her own author in “The Man Who Thought Himself a Woman,” a short story published anonymously in 1857. The text was assigned for a queer short stories course at UCLA, and while I wasn’t surprised that a transgender character was misgendered by a writer in 1857, I was surprised that a professor of queer studies in 2023 would as well.

The Danger of “Traditional Values”: An Analysis of From Russia With Hate (Fall 2013)

*This article is a modern analysis of the themes and content of “From Russia With Hate“ (Fall 2013), the sixth installment of our From The Archive series.* **Trigger warning: violent queerphobia** Since the passing of the law detailed in “From Russia…

It’s Not a Phase: Attacks on the Rights of Trans Youth

There is an ongoing increase in legislative attacks on the transgender community in the United States, especially targeting transgender youth. According to the Human Rights Campaign, in 2015 there were a total of 19 anti-transgender legislations placed on the table…

“Risk vs. Stigma”: Inherent Homophobia in U.S. Blood Donation

Graphic by Zoë Collins (She/Her) In January of 2022, the American Red Cross declared that the United States was in the midst of its worst blood shortage in decades. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic with more positive cases every day, the…

Unions Are An Emerging Political Battleground

Photo by Zoë Collins (She/Her) In the face of an increasingly polarized racial and political landscape, some commentators have carefully noted that Democrats are at a crossroads in terms of their party’s approach to white appeasement politics, where the party’s…

“Don’t Say Gay”: The Would-Be Impact of Florida’s HB 1577

Two days ago, on Thursday, February 24th, the Florida House of Representatives passed a bill by a 69-47 vote aiming to limit discussions of sexuality and gender identity in classrooms. The official name of the bill is HB 1577, the…

Striking For Our Safety: The Community Calls For Hybrid Options

Photo provided by the Disabled Student Union (DSU), Undergraduate Students Association Council (USAC), and Mother Organizations Coalition (MO) In the Fall quarter of 2021, I covered a student protest led by the Disabled Student Union (DSU). The demands for transparency…

On 2021’s Hate Crimes and A Tribute To The Lives Lost: An Analysis of To Live and Get Bashed In America! (October 1988)

Graphic compiled by Christopher Ikonomou (Xe/He) *This article is a modern analysis of the themes and content of “To Live And Get Bashed In America” (October 1988), the second installment of our From the Archive series.* The graphic instances of…