 "'Stop The Steal': A book that no South Korean public library wants to store")
South Korea’s public libraries have faced criticism for not carrying a new book alleging massive election fraud.
The cover of Stop The Steal: The Supreme Court’s History of Election Fraud Cover-Ups depicts both the South Korean and American flags, indicating how President Yoon Suk Yeol, the country’s impeached and suspended leader, has adopted Donald Trump’s strategy of citing election irregularities to rally followers.
Library officials claimed they had received several threats asking them to make the book available, and some administrators were still debating their decision, according to Korea JoongAng Daily.
“We strive to remain neutral, but it is difficult to stock books that satisfy everyone,” one library head said.
Stop The Steal was authored by four solicitors — Do Tae-woo, Park Ju-hyun, Yoon Yong-jin, and Hyun Seong-sam — who represented former conservative People Power Party (PPP) legislator Min Kyung-wook in a legal case alleging electoral fraud in the April 15, 2020 general election. Min had run to represent a district in Incheon.
According to the book, more than 120 lawsuits were filed as a result of the election, with Min’s being the first and most contentious. The Supreme Court ruled against Min, and the writers condemned the decision.
Supporters of Yoon have embraced the “Stop the Steal” chants made popular by U.S. President Donald Trump’s followers, expressing their optimism that Trump will assist their struggling leader.
Yoon’s explanation of his conduct is comparable to Trump’s statements, which cited potential election irregularities and defended the country from both internal and external foes.
While Yoon made no mention of election concerns in his original martial rule announcement, he deployed hundreds Korean military to raid the National Election Commission (NEC) and subsequently claimed North Korea had hacked the NEC without providing any evidence.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsA screenshot of a text message supposedly issued by the library was also posted online. Complaints poured onto the library’s website, with statements like “I will report you to the CIA if you do not stock the book” and “Fire the library director.”
“We were not accepting book requests at the time,” a library spokesman explained. “But we were still singled out for rejecting it, which put us in a tough spot.”
According to a poll performed by the JoongAng Ilbo, 64 requests to stock “Stop the Steal” had been received across public libraries in 25 districts of Seoul by Friday. In one district, there were up to nine petitions.
On the “U.S. politics” gallery of the online community DC Inside, users posted messages encouraging members to request the book from their local libraries and file complaints if they were rejected.
Because the book addresses a delicate political subject, public libraries are grappling with how to handle it. While regulations differ per library, publications that are judged offensive to public morality or written for religious, political, or commercial goals may be prohibited from sale.
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