Women and War: History of U.S. Militarism and Camptowns in Korea
February 9, 2026
Posted in: Webinar
On January 26, 2026, we hosted “Women and War: History of U.S. Militarism and Camptowns in Korea,” a webinar exploring the history of camptowns, human rights abuses against Korean women, and how Korean women have organized to fight for justice.
Studies have long shown that in war and militarism, women are disproportionately harmed and sustain severe human rights abuses. For decades in South Korea, military camptowns surrounding bases have been the site of harm and human rights abuses against Korean women. In 2022, the South Korean Supreme Court found that sex trafficking and illegal prostitution economies existed at U.S. military camptowns from at least 1957 to 2008, and held the Korean government liable for operating and encouraging such prostitution to sustain the South Korea-U.S. military alliance. In 2025, Korean organizers filed a new lawsuit building on that ruling. The 117 plaintiffs are suing the South Korean government for gender-based human rights abuses inflicted by U.S. forces stationed in Korea (U.S.F.K.). This is yet another chapter in the long history of the disproportionate impact and harm sustained by women in Korea as a result of U.S. militarism. We invited South Korean organizer Ko Mira, director of Sae-oom-teo and longtime advocate for women trapped in the militarized sex trade in South Korea, and human rights lawyer Ha Ju Hee to speak at our webinar on these historic developments alongside WCDMZ Board Chair and race, gender, and diaspora scholar Ji-Yeon Yuh, who moderated the discussion.
Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Veterans for Peace President Susan Schnall, and International Women’s Network Against Militarism founding member Margo Okazawa-Rey gave powerful remarks in solidarity, connecting militarized violence against women and the devastating cost of U.S. forever wars from Korea to the Philippines, Palestine, Okinawa, Guam, U.S., and more. Our speakers highlighted the shared struggles of decades of women-led organizing for justice, redress, and the truth about militarism and sexual violence.
Panelists shared background history of how U.S. military camptowns developed in South Korea, as well as the subsequent system of sex trafficking and trade of Korean women and girls established by the U.S. military with support from the South Korean government post-World War 2. Ko and Ha also shared updates to the current lawsuit and discussed the extraordinary, decades-long efforts of survivors in fighting for truth and redress.
To learn more, check out our resource list below:
Books:
- Beyond the Shadow of Camptown: Korean Military Brides in America, Ji-Yeon Yuh
- The First Amerasians, Yuri C. Doolan
- Haunting the Korean Diaspora: Shame, Secrecy, and the Forgotten War, Grace M. Cho
- Over There: Living with the U.S. Military Empire from World War Two to the Present, Maria Höhn and Seungsook Moon
- The State’s Sexuality, Jeong-Mi Park
- Sex Among Allies, Katherine Moon
Articles:
- Military Prostitution and the U.S. Military in Asia, Katharine H.S. Moon
- Welcome to the Monkey House, Tim Shorrock
- A Brutal Sex Trade Built for American Soldiers, Choe Sang-hun
- After 40 years in US camptown sex trade, S. Korean woman rejoices in court victory, Hankyoreh
- South Korean Women Sue U.S. Military for Decades-Long Role in Sex Trade, Danielle Han
- ‘My Body Was Not Mine, but the U.S. Military’s’: Inside the disturbing sex industry thriving around America’s bases, David Vine
- The Violent Embrace, Jessie Kindig
Other media:
- Women Cross DMZ’s 10 Year Anniversary Trek Day 3 Recap: Dongducheon
- Women’s Rights Under the Division System Report
- Women’s Rights Under the Division System Report: Multi-Media Zine
- Call for Veteran Outreach: Korean Women File Landmark Suit Over Sex Trafficking and Human Rights Violations Against the U.S. Military
- Manifestations: Militarized Migration, Kinship, and Diaspora, Ending the Korean War Teaching Initiative at the Korea Policy Institute