Comedian Kang Yu-mi's YouTube video sparks controversy over misogyny in education
Published: 08 Jan. 2026, 13:53
![Comedian Kang Yu-mi's YouTube video uploaded on Jan.1. [SCREEN CAPTURE]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/01/08/debebbc8-c5ef-47ed-b84f-a4c10ddd106f.jpg)
Comedian Kang Yu-mi's YouTube video uploaded on Jan.1. [SCREEN CAPTURE]
A YouTube video by comedian Kang Yu-mi mocking “boy moms” — mothers of a son — has raised accusations of misogyny, evoking public back-and-forth between parents, students, teachers and experts.
The discourse calls into question whether the video is misogynistic content that mocks middle-aged women, or if it’s merely commentary on the “internalized sexism” of that specific group. Amongst those discussing the video, middle and high school girls in particular have pushed back, saying “the problem isn’t the video, but rather misogyny in education.”
The controversy began with Kang’s video titled “Middle-aged nammi-sae,” uploaded to her YouTube channel on Jan. 1. As of Thursday noon, it surpassed 1.47 million views, drawing more than 16,900 comments. Nammi-sae is shorthand for “someone crazy about men,” a derogatory term used to describe women seen as obsessed with men.
In the video, Kang plays a middle-aged working mother with a son. The character overprotects her son, sides with male students and takes an aggressive stance toward female students and women. Lines repeated in the skit include: “Girls these days are slyer,” “If a girl hits you, you should hit back” and “I’m already destined to be a nasty mother-in-law.”
"Mom cafes," online parenting communities, criticized the video, with commenters saying it negatively caricatured “mothers with sons” and misogynisically stokes conflict between women. Others countered that pointed to what they call internalized sexism some middle-aged women hold.
The debate then spread beyond parenting communities to students. Middle and high school girls began sharing accounts in YouTube comments and on the social media platform X of the misogyny they say they have experienced at school. Screenshots of the posts circulated quickly, drawing thousands of likes.
Some students said that boys "laugh while using slurs like [expletive] and saying things like ‘spread your legs ’" and that “sexist insults, depraved jokes and Ilbe-style remarks are every day."
![Comments on comedian Kang Yu-mi’s YouTube channel describing incidents of sexual violence and harrassment [SCREEN CAPTURE]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/01/08/32c03982-27f9-487d-bd77-8336c0513f88.jpg)
Comments on comedian Kang Yu-mi’s YouTube channel describing incidents of sexual violence and harrassment [SCREEN CAPTURE]
Ilbe, also known as Ilgan Best, is an alt-right forum known for its derogatory rhetoric against women and minorities.
Other comments included: “They secretly take photos of girl students and upload them to group chats," “If you take it to the school violence committee, the bullying only gets worse” and “I’m a deepfake porn victim. Please raise your sons properly.”
Authors of these comments argued that if Kang’s video is considered a problem, misogyny occurring in schools should be addressed first.
Teachers also expressed sympathy with the concerns. “Even upper-grade students pick up misogynistic expressions from YouTube or online communities and use them at school,” said an elementary school teacher in Gyeonggi. “If you correct them, once they go back to their smartphones, everything resets.”
“While crimes such as deepfakes or illegal filming can be handled, misogynistic remarks that fall short of criminal conduct are, in practice, difficult to sanction,” said the national teachers’ union.
Experts say the debate didn't reveal an issue limited to individuals or a single group, and instead uncovered a broader problem of structural sexism and gaps in education.
“The impact of schools’ four mandatory violence-prevention programs on teenagers’ gender awareness needs to be examined,” said Heo Min-sook, a legislative researcher at the National Assembly Research Service. “Existing sex education alone makes it difficult to address misogyny spreading online."
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY BAE JAE-SUNG [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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