Soc
DOI 10.1007/s12115-016-0096-3
SYMPOSIUM: SEX AND CONTROVERSY
Evangelical Christian Discourse in South Korea on the LGBT:
the Politics of Cross-Border Learning
Joseph Yi 1 & Gowoon Jung 2 & Joe Phillips 3
# Springer Science+Business Media New York 2017
Abstract The US political debate over LGBT rights and re-
ligious liberty is shaping a similar contest in South Korea
(Korea). Stories of American Christians criminally fined for
refusing to service same-sex weddings, or university students
and faculty punished for expressing their conservative beliefs,
are widely shared in Korea’s evangelical media. The victim
narrative, prominent among American evangelicals, teaches
their Korean brethren that the expansion of LGBT legal rights
and social acceptance endangers religious liberties. The
conclusion is that that they must politically mobilize to
oppose LGBT demands in Korea, even though the local
movement is nascent and weak. There is, however, a
second, more complex narrative emerging from the
United States. This is one of Christian empathy, includ-
ing stories of gay Christians wrestling with their twin
identities, and of heterosexual Christians providing love
and support, rather than condemnation. The empathy
narrative has limited visibility in current political de-
bates, but it encourages personal dialogues between
* Joe Phillips
joephillips5@gmail.com
Joseph Yi
joyichicago@yahoo.com
Gowoon Jung
gjung@albany.edu
1
Department of Political Science, Hanyang University, Seoul 04763,
South Korea
2
Department of Sociology, SUNY Albany, Albany, NY 12222, USA
3
Department of Global Studies, Pusan National University,
Busan 609-735, South Korea
gays and non-gay Christians and is a consequential step to
understanding and tolerance. Drawing on learning and emu-
lation theories, and conducting an empirical study of evangel-
ical media and gay/heterosexual evangelicals in Korea, we
consider the effects of these two American narratives in
Korea.
Keywords Christian . Evangelical . LGBT . Gay . South
Korea . Cross-border learning
Korean Evangelicals’ Dueling LGBT Narratives
A week before the April 13, 2016 election for the South Korean
National Assembly, every citizen received a mailer discussing
each political party’s platform. The Christian Liberal Party
[기독자유당] (CLP) highlighted the oppression of Christians in
western countries: BIn Sweden, a pastor was imprisoned for read-
ing Bible verses about homosexuality….In the United States,
someone was imprisoned for 180 days and paid a $1,000 fine
every day for refusing to officiate same-sex marriages. ^1
The strategy resonated with a significant number of Korean
voters, with the Christian Liberal Party winning 626,853 votes
(2.63% of total votes). Because it split votes with another evan-
gelical party (Christian Democratic Party, 0.54% of the vote),
the CLP missed the minimum 3% needed to win an Assembly
seat.2 Despite their relatively small size, the Christian parties
1
For evangelical media reporting of these examples, see Lifesite, BSwedish
Pastor Sentenced to Month in Prison for Preaching against Homosexuality,^ 5
July 2014; and Christianity Daily, BChristian Wedding Chapel Owners file
Lawsuit to Defend Religious Freedom,^ 21 Oct 21, 2014 (Korean translation,
23 October 2014).
2
Yong-Pil Lee. 기독교 정당 국회 입성 실패! [BChristian Party fails to enter into
the National Assembly!^] Newsnjoy, 14 April 2016 [Korean]. Accessed 20
M a y 2 0 1 6 . h t t p : / / w w w. n e w s n j o y. o r. k r / n e w s / a r t i c l e Vi e w.
html?idxno=202943202943.

represented a vocal, activist segment among the large, predom-
inantly evangelical, Protestant community in South Korea
(Korea).3
Why would Korean politicians and activists highlight the
oppression of Christians in western countries? In Korea,
sexual minorities recently have become publicly visible
and mobilized for social acceptance and legal rights.4 In
this context, Korean Christians look to the experiences
of their counterparts in western democracies, where the
LGBT are already empowered. They are especially in-
terested in the United States, the global heartland of
evangelical Christianity. Evangelical media in Korea re-
peat two narratives from the West, presented as lessons
for Korean Christians.
The prevailing narrative is one of Christians persecut-
ed for their beliefs on sexuality and marriage. The me-
dia report emotional scenes of Christians censored,
fired, and legally penalized by LGBT supporters. This
victim narrative teaches that the expansion of LGBT
legal rights and social acceptance lead to the oppression
of religious liberties. The conclusion follows that
Christians must politically mobilize to oppose LGBT
demands in Korea. The narrative of Christian victim-
hood accelerated in 2016, with the expansion of western
governmental intervention on behalf of LGBT and de-
mands for LGBT rights in Korea, and with politicians in
both countries counter mobilizing evangelical voters.
This Manichean, victim narrative overshadows a more
complex, counter-narrative of Christian empathy, including
stories of gay Christians wrestling with their twin identities.
Although this dialogue exposes Korean evangelicals to only a
segment of LGBTs, it is a consequential step to understanding
and dialogue.
3
Although only 18% of the population adheres to Protestantism, Korea sends
more missionaries abroad than any other country, after the United States, and
hosts the world’s largest Methodist, Presbyterian, and Pentecostal congrega-
tions. Pew Research Center. BPew Research Center’s Religion & Public Life
Project: South Korea,^ 2010. Accessed 20 May 2016. http://www.
globalreligiousfutures.org/countries/south-korea/religious_demography;
Byung Joon Chung, BA Reflection on the Growth and Decline of the Korean
Protestant Church,^ International Review of Mission 103, no. 2 (2014): 319–
333. Up to 95% of Protestants in Korea are theologically conservative or
evangelical in their beliefs. Timothy S. Lee, BBeleaguered Success: Korean
Evangelicalism in the Last Decade of Twentieth Century,^ in Christianity in
Korea, eds. R. E. Buswell, Jr. and T. S. Lee (Honolulu: University of Hawai’i
Press, 2007), 330–350. Moreover, Koreans commonly use the term
BChristian^ (기독교 gidoggyo) for non-Catholic (Protestant) Christian and
BCatholic^ (천주교 cheonjugyo) for Catholic. In common linguistic practice,
BChristian^ refers to a conservative or evangelical Protestant.
4 php?ud=20160526000797.
Sexual minorities potentially encompass a wide variety of sexual orientations
(e.g., zoophilia). This article focuses on the LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual,
and Transgender). We use Bhomosexual^ or Bgay^ to describe persons with
same-sex desires. They do not necessarily consummate or practice such de-
sires, and, whether to do so, is a key question for gay Christians. Koreans
commonly use the English loanword Bgay^ (게이) as short-hand for LGBT,
and this article also does so.
Soc
Public Emergence of LBGT in Korea
For centuries, Koreans with non-heterosexual orientations
largely conformed to a hetero-normative lifestyle through
marriage and procreation.5 During the mid-twentieth century,
Korea’s experiences as a development state and anti-commu-
nist, military dictatorship Bsolidified the binary and hierarchi-
cal conceptualization of gender that regards homosexuality as
a foreign and un-Korean value.^6
Since the 1980s, with the progression toward a liberal,
capitalist democracy, the LGBT developed a large, vibrant
subculture, including bars, clubs, and internet dating.7
Recently, a growing number of supporters, both Koreans
and foreigners, publicly advocate for legal rights and social
acceptance. In 2008, activists formed the Rainbow Action, a
loose coalition of seventeen organizations and, since 2000,
organized the annual Korean Queer Festival.8 These efforts
have produced limited legal rights and social recognition.
For example, the government’s National Human Rights
Commission declared unconstitutional both employment dis-
crimination against homosexuals and the military’s ban
against same-sex relationships. In 2011, the Seoul city gov-
ernment included a provision protecting the rights of LGBTQ
teens.9 In 2016, a Seoul court heard (but turned down) the first
in a series of lawsuits to recognize same-sex marriage.10
For evangelical Christians, who have limited personal expe-
rience with gays, the question is how to understand and respond
to this relatively new movement. Their answer is informed by
‘lessons’ from older, western democracies, as reported and
interpreted by the evangelical media. Learning theory suggests
that Korean evangelicals will learn from their peers in the
West11 and that they will Btak[e] cues^ from western evangel-
icals, especially those in the United States, with which Korea
shares cultural, historical, and religious affinities.12 Korean
evangelical activists are emotionally and socially connected to
5
John Cho (Song Pae), BThe Wedding Banquet Revisited: ‘Contract
Marriages’ between Korean Gays and Lesbians.^ Anthropological Quarterly
82, no. 2 (2009): 401–422.
6
YD Bong, BThe Gay Rights Movement in Democratizing Korea,^ Korean
Studies 32 (2008): 86–103.
7
Cho, BThe Wedding Banquet Revisited.^
8
Junghoon Yang, BHomosexuals and the Contemporary Gay Rights
Movement in Korea: Movement Participation and Collective Identity,^
Master’s Thesis, University of Roehampton (2013).
9
Hansook Oh, BGay Rights Activists in Korea Step Up to Support LGBTQ
Youth,^ KoreaAm Journal, 16 February 2014. Accessed 25 May 2015.
http://iamkoream.com/february-issue-gay-rights-activists-in-korea-step-up-to-
support-lgbtq-youth/.
10
Korean Herald, BGay Couple Appeal Marriage Ruling,^ 26 May 2016.
A c c e s s e d 2 7 M a y 2 0 1 6 . h t t p : / / w w w. k o r e a h e r a l d . c o m / v i e w.
11
Frank Dobbin, Beth Simmons and Geoffrey Garrett, BThe Global Diffusion
of Public Policies: Social Construction, Coercion, Competition, or Learning?^
Annual Review of Sociology 33 (2007): 449–472.
12
Beth Simmons, Frank Dobbin, and Geoffrey Garrett, BIntroduction: The
International Diffusion of Liberalism.^ International Organization 60 (fall
2006): 781–810.
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their counterparts in western countries, through dense, transna-
tional networks and media. The most popular evangelical news
sites in Korea are either headquartered in the West (Christian
Today, London, UK; Christianity Today, Illinois, USA) or claim
a major western branch (Christianity Daily, Los Angeles,
USA). The director of the first Korean Christian documentary
film on homosexuality (‘I Am No Longer Gay’) chose to pre-
mier it in the United States, not Korea, with English subtitles.
Director Brian Kim explained, BWe wanted to share God’s
message here first…. We believe that there will be a spiritual
breakthrough starting from here.^13
To examine the dynamics of this cross-border learning
among evangelicals, we conducted a keyword search for ‘ho-
mosexual’ [동성애]14 in the Korean- and English-language edi-
tions of Christian Today, Christianity Daily, and Christianity
Today. The English-language editions are read by many
English-speaking (or English-learning) Korean evangelicals,
and the English-language edition of Christianity Daily specifi-
cally targets this group. The Korean-editions often translate or
summarize articles from their English-edition counterparts or
from other evangelical sites.
Discourse of Christian Victims
Analyzing Christianity Today, the leading American evangel-
ical magazine, Thomas and Olson find that editorial and fea-
ture articles on homosexuality have dramatically increased in
number and percentage since the 1960s, and this trend has
accelerated.15 During the 2000s, articles warned in mostly
abstract terms about the dangers to religious speech. In the
2010s, articles in Christianity Today and other evangelical
news sites became more specific about Christians fired, fined,
or expelled for practicing their traditionalist beliefs.16
Similarly, we found that, in 2016, a majority of Korean-
edition articles on the LGBT referenced the persecution of
Christian individuals and organizations in western countries.
Christianity Daily [English and Korean] (April 4, 2014)
recounted the continuing legal battle of an Illinois Christian
couple which refused to host same-sex weddings, despite hav-
ing been fined $80,000 for discrimination by the Illinois
13
Christianity Daily, BKorean Christian Filmmaker Sets Out to Tell Stories of
‘Ex-Gays,’^ 29 May 2016. Accessed 20 May 2016. http://www.
christianitydaily.com/articles/7461/20160107/korean-christian-filmmaker-
sets-out-tell-stories-ex-gays.htm.
14
In analyzing Christianity Today (English edition), Thomas and Olson
(2012) used multiple keywords: homosexuals,^ Bhomosexuality,^ Bgay,^
Bgays,^ Blesbian,^ Blesbians,^ Blesbianism,^ or Bsame-sex.^ In our analysis
of the Korean editions of Christianity Today and other news sites, the Korean
term for Bhomosexuality^ [동성애] is sufficient to generate all articles related to
the LGBT.
15
Jeremy N. Thomas and Daniel V. A. Olson, BEvangelical Elites’ Changing
Responses to Homosexuality 1960–2009.^ Sociology of Religion 73, no. 3
(2012): 239–72.
16
Thomas and Olson, BEvangelical Elites.
Human Rights Commission.17 In the same month, Christian
Today [Korean] (April 14, 2016) reported on Felix Ngole,
who was expelled from a graduate school in England for post-
ing private Facebook comments supporting Kentucky clerk
Kim Davis and quoting a passage from Leviticus. Ngole’s
Facebook page, which is open for viewing only to his friends,
caught the eye of the university administration.
The evangelical media have depicted pro-LGBT organiza-
tions and corporations as threatening the autonomy of Christian
colleges and even state governments. Christian Today [English]
(March 20, 2016) described LGBT advocacy groups’ request to
the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) to expel
Christian colleges which have sought waivers from Title IX
requirements for special admissions, accommodations, and oth-
er protections for LGBT students. Christianity Daily [Korean]
(March 30, 2016) discussed how the National Football League,
Disney, and other mega-corporations exert pressure on state
governments (e.g., Georgia, Arizona, Indiana, Arkansas) not
to pass ‘Religious Freedom’ bills.
Politics of Victimhood
These stories have profoundly shaped the evangelical discourse
in Korea and undergirded a post-2008, transnational narrative
that conservative Christians are an embattled remnant, persecut-
ed by non-believers and rights activists (the current victim nar-
rative developed since Barack Obama’s presidency). Declared
Paul Choi, a director of the Korean International Cooperation
Mission Agency: BChristians who stand by God’s Word are
becoming outcasts in a world ruled by the doctrine of human
rights. The end-times tribulation of Christians in the Bible will
come through this continual anti-Christian movement with the
façade of bettering mankind through social progress.^18
Korean evangelical activists such as Choi argue that they
must learn from their western counterparts and resist any con-
cessions to gay rights. Thousands of conservative Christians
rallied against the 2015 (June 9–28) Queer Culture Festival in
Seoul City Plaza. The Christian Council of Korea and other
organizations blocked national legislation on LGBT rights19
17
Hae-Ri Lee [이혜리], BChristian Couple Vow not to Host Same-Sex
Weddings in their Illinois B&B Despite State Fines, Penalties,^ April 4,
2016 [(original) Jonah Hicap, April 1, 2016]. Accessed 20 May, 2016.
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/christian.couple.vow.not.to.host.same.
sex.weddings.in.their.illinois.bb.despite.state.fines.penalties/83052.htm.
18
Paul Choi, BSame-Sex Marriage and the Global Anti-Christian
Movement.^ Global Alliance Newsletter, May 2013. Accessed 20
May 2016. http://www.intercp.org/2013/05/same-sex-marriage-and-the-
global-anti-christian-movement/.
19
Tong-hyun Kim, BCrusade on Gay Legislation,^ Korea Times, 14 April
2 0 1 3 . A c c e s s e d 2 0 M a y 2 0 1 6 . h t t p : / / w w w. k o r e a t i m e s . c o .
kr/www/news/culture/2013/04/135_133912.html; Tong-hyun Kim, BLGBT
Forum in Korea Faces Resistance,^ Korea Times, 29 October 2013.
A c c e s s e d 2 0 M a y 2 0 1 6 . h t t p : / / w w w. k o r e a t i m e s . c o .
kr/www/news/culture/2013/10/316_145136.html.

and persuaded progressive party leader Moon Jae-in and
Seoul Mayor Park Won Soon to retract their support for
same-sex marriage.20 Anti-LGBT activists also pressure pas-
tors to take sides politically or risk being labeled as pro-LGBT.
Described one lay leader: BIf you don’t participate, then you
are promoting homosexuality. There have been Youtube
videos calling these [nonpartisan] pastors out.^
Significantly, the narrative of Christian victimhood has also
impacted younger, western-educated Korean evangelicals,
who may be inclined to support gay rights. In the United
States, younger evangelicals are more likely to tolerate homo-
sexuality,21 and we see similar trends in Korea. In particular,
Korean evangelicals who have studied in western countries
become personally familiar with the LGBT22 and with the
‘emerging-church’ discourse of inclusion and tolerance.23
Young, western-educated evangelicals, however, also sup-
port religious liberty, and resent the supposedly excessive po-
litical power of the LGBT and their abuse of the state appara-
tus against religious believers. A leading Korean-American
evangelical strongly criticized how the gay rights movement
uses the multicultural curriculum in US public schools to ‘in-
doctrinate’ impressionable children. 24 The narrative of
Christian victimhood contributes to a political environment
where no Korean evangelical leader publicly expresses sup-
port for LGBT rights.
Discourse of Christian Empathy
Though victimhood currently dominates Christian discourse on
the LGBT, we find emerging counter-narratives. In the 2010s, a
small, emerging narrative discusses how Christians can under-
stand and love the LGBT. In Christian Today [Korean] (April
11, 2016), a prominent radio host Dr. Michael Brown reported
receiving angry comments on his Facebook page from a self-
confessed gay and former Christian, Bwho claimed that his
father, a Christian pastor, beat me almost to death and dumped
me in the middle of the desert.^
Brown says that behind the man’s Bseething hatred and
anger^ is a massive open wound that needs to be treated.
The gay man’s story might or might not be true, but Brown
20
Jeong-ju Na, BDilemma for Park Won-soon,^ Korea Times, 28 January 28
2 0 1 5 . A c c e s s e d 2 0 M a y 2 0 1 6 . h t t p : / / w w w. k o r e a t i m e s . c o .
kr/www/news/opinon/2015/02/164_172589.html.
21
Pew Research Center, BMost U.S. Christian Groups Grow more Accepting
of Homosexuality,^ 18 December 2015. Accessed 20 May 2016.
http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/12/18/most-u-s-christian-
groups-grow-more-accepting-of-homosexuality/.
22
Joseph Yi, Joe Phillips and Shin Do Sung, BSame-Sex Marriage, Korean
Christians, and the Challenge of Democratic Engagement,^ Society 51
(July/Aug. 2014): 415–422.
23
Gerardo Marti and Gladys Ganiel, The Deconstructed Church:
Understanding Emerging Christianity (New York: Oxford University Press,
2014).
24
Joseph Yi, et al., BSame-Sex Marriage, Korean Christians.^
Soc
says it is clear that many from the LGBT community Bspew
venom against Christians, against God, and against the Bible^
because they Bhave been wounded by professing Christians –
by their words, their attitudes, and their actions.^ Brown says
it is important for Christians to respond to their anger in love,
because it is the only way members of the LGBT community
can find wholeness in the Lord.25
Particularly compelling are the stories of those whom we
term gay evangelicals, who affirm traditional biblical views on
sexuality but openly discuss their same-sex attractions or ex-
periences. They generally practiced homosexuality until
converting to conservative Christianity and now remain celi-
bate or in heterosexual marriages. Two prominent voices have
been Rosaria Butterfield, formerly a Syracuse tenured English
professor and currently a ‘full-time’ mother and pastor’s wife
and a ‘part-time’ author and speaker (Christian Today
[Korean] November 5, 2014; Christianity Today [English]
February 7, 2013)26; and Christopher Yuan, a Chinese-
American, best-selling author, and teacher at the Moody
Bible Institute.
Perhaps owing to his youth and struggles with his Asian
family, Yuan resonated with Korean readers: a Christian Post
article about him was fully translated (sentence-by-sentence)
into Korean in both Christian Today and Christianity Daily
(November 3, 2014). In the article, Yuan advised parents of
gay children to not be ashamed, but to love them uncondition-
ally and to guide them back to the Gospel: B‘Parents, love
your [LGBT] or same-sex attracted children and point them
to a life of costly discipleship following Jesus’…Yuan urged
Christian parents with gay children not to play the blame
game, but rather realize that ‘the job of Christian parents is
not to produce godly children, but the job of Christian parents
is to be godly parents.’ God, he said, does not win over sinners
with angry words but through kindness.^27
Yuan asked parents not to coerce their children, but to sim-
ply share the gospel and to pray—as did his parents—that they
will decide to obey on their own. In his authored publica-
tions,28 Yuan rejected the focus on changing a person’s sexual
25
Czarina Ong, Christian Today – UK, [Korean], April 9, 2016 (Translated
into Korean, Christian Today, April 11, 2016). Accessed 20 May 2016.
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/behind.lgbt.peoples.seething.hatred.
and.anger.is.a.massive.open.wound.that.needs.treatment.says.michael.
brown/83575.htm.
26
Rosaria Champagne Butterfield, BMy Train Wreck Conversation,^
Christianity Today, 7 February 2013. Accessed 20 May 2016. http://www.
christianitytoday.com/ct/2013/january-february/my-train-wreck-conversion.
html.
27
Stephen Samuel, BChristian Leader with Same-Sex Attraction says Parents
must Show Love for their Gay Children,^ Christian Post, 30 October 2014.
Accessed 20 May 2016. http://www.christianpost.com/news/christian-leader-
with-same-sex-attraction-says-parents-must-show-love-for-their-gay-
children-128837/
28
Christopher Yuan, BWhy ‘God and the Gay Christian’ Is Wrong About the
Bible and Same-Sex Relationships,^ Christianity Today, 9 June 2014.
Accessed 20 May 2016. http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2014/june-web-
only/why-matthew-vines-is-wrong-about-bible-same-sex-relationshi.html.
Soc
orientation and instead stressed Christian holiness and scrip-
tural obedience, including voluntary celibacy for those not in
heterosexual marriage.
The gay evangelical discourse has exposed Korean evangel-
icals to at least a segment of the gay community. Media articles
about and from gay Christians overseas have been the main
opportunities for Korean readers to learn about the personal
lives and thoughts of gays, inasmuch as domestic-based articles
were nearly nonexistent, at least before the 2016 Korean docu-
mentary, ‘I Am No Longer Gay.’ This overseas discourse now
offers a model for dialogue among Korean evangelicals.
In Korea, no gay evangelical has come out publicly like
Yuan, but a few voices have emerged on social media and
blogs. ‘David’ has posted online about his ongoing story as
a gay Christian living in Seoul, in love with the mother of his
children, and struggling for wholeness, healing, manhood,
brotherhood, and integrity: BI know that some outside of the
church would say that I’m in denial. I know that some inside
of the Church would say that I’m living an unnecessary cha-
rade. It hurts when brothers and sisters think my choice denies
who I am and was inherently a mistake. It hurts just as much
when brothers and sisters think that who I am makes me less
valuable to the Kingdom^ (April 9, 2016).29
Brian Kim said that he produced the film, ‘I Am No Longer
Gay,’ Bto spread awareness that there are many in the church
who know and love Jesus but also have same-sex attractions;
and to ask the church, ‘How will we embrace those who identify
as LGBT?’^ Somewhat belying the film’s title, Kim interviewed
gays with a variety of views on homosexuality (such as whether
it is innate), inside and outside the church. In the film, a female
pastor declared: BIf you say, ‘If you really love Jesus, you
wouldn’t do that anymore,’ you are essentially killing them
twice over….These are individuals who really do love Jesus.^30
The intergroup contact hypothesis proposes that increased
familiarity with those perceived as different reduces hostility
and increases trust.31 Media articles and personal stories of
gay Christians increase evangelicals’ familiarity with at least a
segment of the gay community and contributes to an environ-
ment where a small, growing number of evangelical pastors
and elders dialogue with gays, outside of the political arena.
29
‘David.’ Coming out to my Old Friends. REALHUNGRY, 9 April 2016.
Accessed 10 May 2016. http://realhungry.com/231/coming-out-to-my-old-
friends/.
30
Rachael Lee, BKorean Christian Filmmaker Sets Out to Tell Stories of ‘Ex-
Gays.’^ Christianity Daily, 7 January 2016. Accessed 20 May 2016.
http://www.christianitydaily.com/articles/7461/20160107/korean-christian-
filmmaker-sets-out-tell-stories-ex-gays.htm.
31
Sue Ann Skipworth, Andrew Garner, and Bryan J. Dettrey, BLimitations of
the Contact Hypothesis: Heterogeneity in the Contact Effect on Attitudes
toward Gay Rights,^ Politics & Policy 38, no. 5 (2010): 887–906.
Future Trends
In 2016, Korean evangelicals have mobilized around a perse-
cuted victim narrative, despite local LGBTs’ very limited mo-
bilization and success in politics and the courts. Korean evan-
gelicals are, instead, reacting to stories of LGBT dominance
and Christian persecution in the United States, which is viewed
as a culturally and religiously proximate nation. This ‘proxim-
ity’ means that US election-year mobilization and rhetoric sur-
rounding religious liberty likely intensify Korean evangelicals’
opposition to LGBT rights or even dialogue. This leaves
Korean LGBTs facing an intensive, organized opposition be-
fore they have even shown themselves to be a political force.
The results of the 2016 US elections may accelerate this
polarization between religious conservatives and the LGBT;
or US politicians and activists might now step back and model
new ways to accommodate the rights of different groups. They
may look at the compromise among Mormon leaders and
LGBT rights advocates in Republican-dominated Utah, which
led to state legislation enhancing the rights of both the LGBT
and marriage traditionalists.32
Any receding of the culture wars, however temporary, will
provide more space for grassroots dialogue and understanding
between religious conservatives and the LGBT. In particular,
gay evangelicals are strategically positioned to explain some
of the gay experience to non-gay Christians and to bridge the
LGBT and evangelical communities. Whether as persecuted
victims or as bridge-builders, Americans shape the global,
religious media discourse and showcase the dangers and op-
portunities of increasingly plural societies.
Joseph Yi is an associate professor of political science at Hanyang
University.
Gowoon Jung is a Ph.D. Candidate in the department of Sociology at
SUNY Albany.
Joe Phillips is an associate professor, Department of Global Studies, Pusan
National University. The authors thank research assistant Won Young Chung
(Hanyang University). This article was supported by the Hanyang University
Research Fund and the National Research Foundation of Korea Grant,
funded by the Korean Government (NRF- 2016S1A5A2A01026603).
32
Democracy Now, BAs Anti-LGBT Laws Sweep U.S., How Did GOP-Led
Utah Pass a Landmark Nondiscrimination Bill? 19 April 2016. Accessed 20
May 2016. http://www.democracynow.org/2016/4/19/as_anti_lgbt_laws_
sweep_us.