From Red Velvet's Irene to IU to now Brave Girls' Yuna, female idols have been constantly criticized for being feminists. But why?

Keep on reading to learn more.

Female Idols Slammed for Being Feminists

Brave Girls member Yuna recently made headlines after she was accused of being feminists due to something she said on air.

While on the program "Bbucance," viewers claimed Yuna said the word "oh jo oh eok," which is used by online feminists against ment to say, "Men unnecessarily have 5.5 trillion sperm in men."

However, that is not what the idol actually said. What she actually said was "나 5조억 점 땄다 (na 5-jo eok)," which translates to her saying she got 5 trillion points.

Though it was a simple misunderstanding, Yuna received harsh messages from male fans and viewers to the point where her company announced legal action against malicious comments.

Yuna is far from the first idol to be slammed for feminist actions, however.

In 2018, Irene received massive backlash from male fans after she recommended the book "Kim Ji Young, Born 1982," a book about casual sexism in South Korea, to a fan during a fansign. Male fans soon started burning merchandise that features Irene's image, leading international fans to defend the idol on social media.

Another Red Velvet member, Joy, received similar backlash after she was seen wearing a Dior shirt that read "We should all be feminists" on her Instagram. The idol was slammed for being selfish, saying that her actions could easily affect her fellow group members in a negative way.

Apink member and actress Son Naeun was also criticized in 2018 after she posted a photo to Instagram of her holding her phone. The reason it received backlash was due to the phone case — the case was from the brand Zadig & Voltaire and read "Girls can do anything." Following the backlash, Naeun took the photos down.

AOA member Seolhyun was also slammed by male fans after she stated in an interview that she was growing more interested in social issues concerning women. She soon started following stars that were feminists while unfollowing stars who have been exposed as not being feminists.

Suzy, on the other hand, shared a screenshot of her signing a petition to bring justice for Yang Ye Won, who was sexually harassed during a photoshoot. Following the backlash, the idol shared a lengthy explanation as to why she felt the need to share her choice online.

Soloist IU was also recently under fire after she was spotted wearing a shirt that read, "If you are not angry, you are not paying attention." The shirt, which is being sold online, is marketed as a feminist shirt.

While being a feminist is something positive, it is often seen as negative in South Korea. But why?

Why are Female idols Criticized for Being Feminists?

Feminism is defined a the belief in full economic, social, and political equality for women. It is a movement that stands for equal rights between men and women and putting the two on equal footing.

However, the term feminism is used in a negative light in South Korea.

In South Korea, women who are feminists are considered demanding or too headstrong. They portray feminists as radicals who want to get rid of men instead of equality.

While many Korean feminists have tried to counter these claims, the voices of non-feminists far outweigh those of feminists in the country.

What do you think of the situation?

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Written by Alexa Lewis