Should We Go on a Sex Strike?

Or does the 4B movement undermine women's body autonomy?

Almost as soon as Trump’s victory was announced last week, Google searches for “4B movement” surged—and a proliferation of TikToks followed. 4B is a South Korean feminist movement that originated in the 2010s, in response to their country’s entrenched patriarchy, which is upheld by rigid beauty standards for women.

“Bi” means “not” in Korean, so 4Bs translates roughly to “4 Nos.” Followers of 4B live their activism by following these rules: 

• No sex with men

• No dating men

• No marrying men

• No having children with men 

Look, I get it. Last Wednesday night, after I spent the day feeling wrung out and hollow in the face of Trump’s victory, I got a text from a man who hadn’t otherwise reached out to me since September… wondering if I might be up for a post-election hook-up.