DuBois and K-Pop Kissing Scenes | Argumentation #5

          Patriotism in the United States is an upheld expectation for everyone who holds a citizenship. That simply isn’t the case in this melting pot of diversity that we call the US. Some people would rather not state their lack of patriotism and comply with this expectation and others choose to not comply at all. Activist W.E.B. DuBois advocates for mixture of both actions, otherwise known as "noblesse oblige”, or compliance to a certain extent. This is non-compliance in a way that promotes change and success, and can be seen today.

            Just recently, a young singer-song writer Go Tae-Seob, otherwise known as Holland released his debut single “Neverland”. In this music video, the plot surrounds a gay couple who endures trouble accepting themselves, but in the end choose their love over anything. One of the biggest things about this music video was the kissing scene. Which caused the music video to go viral not only in South Korea, but also internationally. Within the video and the lyrics themselves, Holland highlights the mental trouble that people go through as a part of the LGBTQ+ community, as well as introducing those very real situations to the traditional society of South Korea. This is a strong example of DuBois’ idea, as Holland isn’t in people’s faces about it, but at the same time is not staying silent about a real issue.

      With that said, DuBois also believes that compliance with the rules also aids in progress, which by no means is true. If anything, compliance and staying silent will get people nowhere, and is counter-effective when trying to create change.

      DuBois’ idea defines how change can be made, and implies that the only way for any progress to be made is with non-compliance, to any extent. Whether that be extreme or not, any effort to stray away from the social norm is an effort to make a change.