Glass Ceiling

If you are a member of BTS’ ARMY fandom, you will appreciate the power behind these words, spoken by the group’s leader RM, at the 2018 United Nations General Assembly: “No matter who you are, where you’re from, your skin color, your gender identity, just speak yourself.” This notion of ‘speaking yourself’ is not limited to the spoken word. It also manifests itself through art, music, literature, and, more commonly now, through the fashion and beauty industries.

BTS is known to openly advocate for those whose voices have been marginalized in today’s modern society; this will manifest itself through their music. Sometimes though, the clothes BTS wears may speak louder than any public announcement could ever do. Such is the case with Jimin and Jin, who have worn clothing items that carried the messages “Radical Feminism” and “Gender Equality.” As expected, the responses from fans and netizens were mixed, some believing that their fashion sense was in bad taste, while others celebrated their boldness for supporting the feminist movement as male idols.

The idea that males should be able to support feminism is not new. Nigerian-born writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie wrote a book and delivered a TEDx Talk titled: “We Should All Be Feminists.” By formulating her understanding, Adichie reclaimed the word feminism as a statement of inclusiveness whereby “a feminist is a man or a woman who says, Yes, there's a problem with gender as it is today, and we must fix it. We must do better.” This is a message that resonates with BTS’ own beliefs and values. If there is an injustice, we have a responsibility both as individuals and as a collective, to make it better.

Feminism, the advocacy of women's rights and gender equality, has grown to become a global phenomenon. In the past and certain parts of the world still, laws are made in a way that automatically downplays a woman's capability over a man's. For instance, men are often paid more than women for the same job.

More often than not, feminism is seen as women attempting to 'overtake' men in society, which isn't quite the case. Equality and equity—or rather, lack thereof—are the roots of this movement. For that very reason, it's not limited to females only. Several males worldwide have also lent the movement support, and while changes have been made, the root of the problem is ever-present.

Feminism, while advocating women's rights, isn't limited to one gender. Instead, it's a subgroup of human rights; because, at the end of the day, everyone —regardless of gender, sexuality, race, or religion—is human and therefore deserves to be treated equally.

BTS, renowned for their socially conscious lyrics, have also addressed this issue despite belonging to a society that views feminism much differently from the West: negatively, in most cases. Examples include their support for female artists both inside and outside of Korea and lyrics like "21st Century Girl" from WINGS. However, a significant example we'll focus on here is that of the ‘Glass Ceiling’ referenced in "Not Today" from WINGS: You Never Walk Alone.

“Throw away the fear in your eyes / Break the glass ceiling that traps you.”

—”Not Today,” WINGS: YNWA

During a press conference held at the Gocheok Sky Dome in 2017 for the “BTS LIVE TRILOGY EPISODE III: THE WINGS TOUR,” RM stated that they purposely used this phrase in the lyrics. He explained, “‘Glass Ceiling’ is the invisible and unbreakable wall, isn't it? It's the term that was used to represent an invisible barrier that prevents the promotion of women in their industry. I want to say that it's not true that we misused the meaning of ‘glass ceiling’.” He further stated that while they were aware of the criticism received, they wanted to be clear that BTS would continue to be vocal about socially unjust and unreasonable matters.

There is a question that is frequently raised: can men be feminists, too? Simply put, yes, they can. As human beings, supporting one another is crucial, and that constitutes everyone.

As Maisie Williams (Game of Thrones actress) has said, “And then I realized everyone is not a feminist, unfortunately. But I also feel like we should stop calling feminists ‘feminists’ and just start calling people who aren’t feminist ‘sexist’ – and then everyone else is just a human. You are either a normal person or a sexist.”

Let’s add one more element to this conversation by taking an excerpt from RM’s song, “Trivia: Love” as translated by Doolset. These lyrics read:

난 그냥 사람, 사람 사람

I’m just a human, human, human

넌 나의 모든 모서릴 잠식

You erode all my edges

나를 사랑, 사랑, 사랑으로 만들어 만들어

And make me a love, love, love

Doolset’s translation and accompanying notes tell us that ‘love’ can smooth out a person’s sharp edges, transforming them into someone who is both loved and lovable. This is explained further by Doolset in the following quote: “For 사람 [human] to become 사랑 [love], the edges of ㅁ have to be smoothed out so that ㅁ can become ㅇ. Similar to English, but not in the entirely same way, the word “edge” is used to describe people in Korean. A person with edges is someone who is difficult and unsociable.”

Gender equality also speaks to this - treating everyone equally regardless of gender - as an expression of love and respect. Gender should not be the primary factor when determining who is best suited to a particular role. Instead, the person’s abilities should take precedence. By doing so, we take away the need for glass ceilings.

If there is potential for feminism to be an expression of inclusivity and love that restores the balance between genders, maybe we should all be feminists!

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Written By: LP & Shelley

Edit By: Aury

Checked By: Euni