Why CL’s Appearance At A Gay Club Is Actually A Very Big Deal
Legendary artist and 2NE1 member CL is receiving praise for making a bold statement.
This week, CL was spotted in Itaewon, Seoul, South Korea. She went clubbing.
📸 | CL was spotted at Itaewon last night.
🏷️ #CL #씨엘 @chaelinCL pic.twitter.com/EKx5R6AP2v
— CL UPDATES (@CLupdts) May 22, 2022
CL nuna at a Itaewon club yesterday
— Video caption
Yet, it was not just any kind of nightclub. It was a gay club!
CL at GAY CLUB pic.twitter.com/KkdSGuq3oV
— CallMeChi (@gzb_korea) May 24, 2022
The club in question is the gay nightclub King Club, located on “Homo Hill.” It’s at the end of the bar district of Itaewon and includes cafés, restaurants, gay clubs and bars, and shops.
‘Homo Hill,’ also known as ‘The Hill’ or ‘LGBTQ Street’, is an informal name for an LGBTQ+ neighborhood in Itaewon, Seoul, South Korea. It is occupied by numerous LGBTQ+ establishments and is considered a safe space for LGBTQ+-identifying people. The creation of ‘Homo Hill’ stems from the formation of the entertainment area for U.S. military soldiers during the time of the Korean War.
— Wikipedia
CL’s fans loved and appreciated that CL went not to an ordinary club but a gay club. She clearly supports the LGBTQIA+ community.
CL was at a gay night club in Itaewon, she said gay rights 🌈 pic.twitter.com/17GvbpHHzp
— caz (@C4Z93) May 22, 2022
CL has actually been an outspoken supporter of LGBTQIA+ rights for a while. For one thing, she is famously close friends with openly-gay designer Jeremy Scott.
In 2013, she spoke about her friendship with Jeremy Scott and her LGBTQIA+ fans in an interview with ELLE Magazine. She was asked, “You have such a big gay following. Do you know about that?”
Actually yeah. And lesbians too. And drag queens. I love them! I have so many gay friends and I love them so much because they’re fun. You know, I can’t be friends with guys. You can girl talk with them. They’re so special and so talented. And they’re so fast with stuff. I can’t ask ‘do I look good’ to my girlfriends but I will ask my gay friends because they will be honest. They’ll be like, ‘no girl.’ I can’t do that to girls or guys, they won’t be honest. I love them because of that.
— CL
While she has been an LGBTQIA+ advocate for so long, her public support now is especially commendable. Fans pointed out that it is “comforting” to see CL publicly attend a gay nightclub at a time when LGBTQIA+ rights in South Korea are unfortunately decreasing.
CL going to a gay club in the midst of her country just electing their most homophobic president I think she’s a queen pic.twitter.com/GC6KzkYbqY
— . (@mtbdciel) May 22, 2022
fyi- she was at king club (go look up itaewon homo hill 😊)
side note: it's kinda comforting to see CL here considering the new govt is anti lgbtq+, hate crimes are on the rise recently, and seoul city is trying to cancel pride
wbk she was always with us but still 🌈 pic.twitter.com/P68mJOiSrX
— caz (@C4Z93) May 22, 2022
Recently, South Korea had its election, and the new government is conservative, including anti-LGBTQIA+.
I respect individuals’ diverse sexual orientations. However, personally, I am against homosexuality. And there are people who have innate homosexual tendencies, but in many cases, I think people mistake their habits or tendencies as their sexual instincts. In those cases, homosexuality can be treated, like how a smoker can receive treatments for cigarette addiction.
— Kim Seong Hoe, South Korea Presidential Secretary for Religion & Multiculturalism
So, homophobic crimes are on the rise. Openly gay K-Pop idol HOLLAND even was a victim of an attack and has spoke out about the few rights the LGBTQIA+ community has in South Korea.
Last night, I was walking around Itaewon with my manager and a friend. Suddenly, a stranger man approached me and hit me on the face twice, calling me ‘a dirty gay’. Now I have a scar on my face and I’m going to the hospital soon. This is obviously a hate crime. The fact that my sexuality as gay is public should never expose myself to this kind of violence. Nor any other LGBT+ and all elders, women and minorities in this world. This happening in 2022 shows the sad reality of LGBT+ human rights.
I reported to the police and I hope the case is well solved.This should never happen to anybody in this world, no matter who you are. I wish our world is filled with more love and hope rather than hate and violence.
— HOLLAND
Previously, Itaewon clubs, particularly gay clubs, were frequently blamed for spikes in COVID-19 outbreaks. Consequently, it stirred up homophobia.
South Korea’s media began focusing on the neighborhood after public health authorities announced that a 29-year-old man who later tested positive for the coronavirus visited several establishments in the area on May 2. Authorities gathered a list of more than 5,500 people who visited clubs there.
— TIME Magazine
Additionally, there are discussions on potentially canceling Pride events. According to Attitude Magazine, “More than 210,000 people sign a petition to cancel ‘abominable’ gay pride in South Korea.”
So, CL’s support for LGBTQIA+ at this time is outstanding.
