Park Yeonmi - Revision history

Charhapiti: /* Inconsistencies in story */

2025-09-15T06:38:46Z

Inconsistencies in story

← Older revision		Revision as of 06:38, 15 September 2025
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	She first gained prominence in 2013 by presenting some of the most extreme and absurd testimonies, and has been able to build a cult following and a very lucrative career as the posterchild for anti-Communism. She is cited more than any other defector because she says exactly what anti-Communists want to hear about a closed-off, Communist country. Today, she is a culture warrior who weaponizes her background for personal gain. As her credibility waned, Park settled into her niche as a right-wing ideologue, standing side-by-side figures such as Jordan Peterson, who wrote the foreword to her latest book: ''While Time Remains: A North Korean Defector's Search for Freedom in America''.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Ken Silverstein\|newspaper=Washington Babylon\|title=Young Voices, the PR Shop That Launched the Career of North Korean Celebrity Defector Yeonmi Park, Helps American Journalists and Foreign “Dissidents" Peddle the Gospel of Capitalism\|date=2025-01-10\|url=https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250512184106/https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched}}</ref> Park has claimed the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". An emblematic example of this in action from The Telegraph, a right-wing British media network:		She first gained prominence in 2013 by presenting some of the most extreme and absurd testimonies, and has been able to build a cult following and a very lucrative career as the posterchild for anti-Communism. She is cited more than any other defector because she says exactly what anti-Communists want to hear about a closed-off, Communist country. Today, she is a culture warrior who weaponizes her background for personal gain. As her credibility waned, Park settled into her niche as a right-wing ideologue, standing side-by-side figures such as Jordan Peterson, who wrote the foreword to her latest book: ''While Time Remains: A North Korean Defector's Search for Freedom in America''.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Ken Silverstein\|newspaper=Washington Babylon\|title=Young Voices, the PR Shop That Launched the Career of North Korean Celebrity Defector Yeonmi Park, Helps American Journalists and Foreign “Dissidents" Peddle the Gospel of Capitalism\|date=2025-01-10\|url=https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250512184106/https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched}}</ref> Park has claimed the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". An emblematic example of this in action from The Telegraph, a right-wing British media network:

	<blockquote>However, since relocating to America, and earning a degree from Columbia University, she has sounded the alarm over “cancel culture” and political influences on the country’s education system… In an interview with The Telegraph, Ms Park said she was shocked by the political ideology promoted by professors and fellow students at the Ivy League university. She claimed that while studying for a human rights degree, she was taught that Jane Austen “promoted white supremacy”, maths was “racist” and debate over trans issues were silenced… Ms Park was particularly critical of the way in which discussions around sex and gender were policed on campus, calling it “crazier than North Korea”.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Rozina Sabur\|title=‘Woke’ US schools scarier than North Korea, says defector\|date=2023\|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2023/03/26/woke-us-schools-scarier-north-korea-says-defector/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250709051456/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2023/03/26/woke-us-schools-scarier-north-korea-says-defector/}}</ref></blockquote> She told the New York Times that she is working for [[Turning Point USA]].<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Will Sommer\|title=A North Korean defector captivated U.S. media. Some question her story.\|date=2023\|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2023/07/16/yeonmi-park-conservative-defector-stories-questioned/\|archive-url=https://archive.is/bm8ni}}</ref> Park also has material ties to the [[Atlas Network]], a conservative organisation which has received funding from the US State Department and the United States Congress.<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=Intelligence Online .com\|title=Young Voices helps conservative US writers and foreign dissidents become champions of America\|date=28/07/2023 at 04:00 GMT\|url=https://www.intelligenceonline.com/corporate-intelligence/2023/07/28/young-voices-helps-conservative-us-writers-and-foreign-dissidents-become-champions-of-america,110008329-gra\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250418190008/https://www.intelligenceonline.com/corporate-intelligence/2023/07/28/young-voices-helps-conservative-us-writers-and-foreign-dissidents-become-champions-of-america,110008329-gra\|quote=Part talent agency, part PR firm, Young Voices is closely affiliated with the Koch-funded Atlas Network, and its most famous graduate is celebrity North Korean defector Yeonmi Park.}}</ref><ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=Atlas Network\|title=North Korean human rights: the crisis that remains\|date=September 5, 2018\|url=https://www.atlasnetwork.org/articles/north-korean-human-rights-the-crisis-that-remains\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240120030643/https://www.atlasnetwork.org/articles/north-korean-human-rights-the-crisis-that-remains}}</ref><ref>{{Web citation\|author=Ken Silverstein\|newspaper=Washington Babylon\|title=Young Voices, the PR Shop That Launched the Career of North Korean Celebrity Defector Yeonmi Park, Helps American Journalists and Foreign “Dissidents" Peddle the Gospel of Capitalism\|date=2025-01-10\|url=https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250512184106/https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|quote=Young Voices isn’t a conventional business, though, but a political organization that exclusively recruits and promotes conservatives, such as its best known alumnus Yeonmi Park, the North Korean celebrity defector and fabulist it helped transform into a global right-wing star. Established in 2013 by the Atlas Network, a nonprofit based in the Virginia suburbs just outside of the capital that creates and connects a web of right-wing think tanks in the US and around the world, Young Voices subsequently spun off and currently operates as an independent organization. It remains closely affiliated with Atlas and has close ties to a number of prominent conservative outlets, including the Federalist Society, which it recently partnered with on a media fellowship program for law students. Casey Givens, the group’s President and Executive Director, is a former Policy Analyst for the Koch-funded Americans for Prosperity Foundation. Vice President Scott Barbee, the controlling shareholder of the investment firm Aegis Financial Corporation, and Treasurer Dan Grossman, the owner of a chain of office supply stores, both have board seats at Atlas. Young Voices received donations of about $2 million last year, according to its most recent nonprofit tax filing with the the IRS. It doesn’t disclose its donors, but they include Stand Together, which was founded by Charles Koch, and the Bradley Foundation, a leading funder of conservative causes.}}</ref>		<blockquote>However, since relocating to America, and earning a degree from Columbia University, she has sounded the alarm over “cancel culture” and political influences on the country’s education system… In an interview with The Telegraph, Ms Park said she was shocked by the political ideology promoted by professors and fellow students at the Ivy League university. She claimed that while studying for a human rights degree, she was taught that Jane Austen “promoted white supremacy”, maths was “racist” and debate over trans issues were silenced… Ms Park was particularly critical of the way in which discussions around sex and gender were policed on campus, calling it “crazier than North Korea”.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Rozina Sabur\|title=‘Woke’ US schools scarier than North Korea, says defector\|date=2023\|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2023/03/26/woke-us-schools-scarier-north-korea-says-defector/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250709051456/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2023/03/26/woke-us-schools-scarier-north-korea-says-defector/}}</ref></blockquote> Park has even continued with her lies in the USA, telling Joe Rogan that her turn to the right was "prompted by an incident during the George Floyd protests in 2020, when she was allegedly robbed by three Black woman, and stopped from calling the police by a crowd of 20 white bystanders".<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Thom Waite\|newspaper=Dazed\|title=Yeonmi Park: is the DPRK defector and ‘enemy of the woke’ a western psy-op?\|date=2023-05-17\|url=https://www.dazeddigital.com/life-culture/article/59869/1/yeonmi-park-north-korea-defector-enemy-of-the-woke-psy-op-joe-rogan-memes\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230607065339/https://www.dazeddigital.com/life-culture/article/59869/1/yeonmi-park-north-korea-defector-enemy-of-the-woke-psy-op-joe-rogan-memes}}</ref>

			She told the New York Times that she is working for [[Turning Point USA]].<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Will Sommer\|title=A North Korean defector captivated U.S. media. Some question her story.\|date=2023\|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2023/07/16/yeonmi-park-conservative-defector-stories-questioned/\|archive-url=https://archive.is/bm8ni}}</ref> Park also has material ties to the [[Atlas Network]], a conservative organisation which has received funding from the US State Department and the United States Congress.<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=Intelligence Online .com\|title=Young Voices helps conservative US writers and foreign dissidents become champions of America\|date=28/07/2023 at 04:00 GMT\|url=https://www.intelligenceonline.com/corporate-intelligence/2023/07/28/young-voices-helps-conservative-us-writers-and-foreign-dissidents-become-champions-of-america,110008329-gra\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250418190008/https://www.intelligenceonline.com/corporate-intelligence/2023/07/28/young-voices-helps-conservative-us-writers-and-foreign-dissidents-become-champions-of-america,110008329-gra\|quote=Part talent agency, part PR firm, Young Voices is closely affiliated with the Koch-funded Atlas Network, and its most famous graduate is celebrity North Korean defector Yeonmi Park.}}</ref><ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=Atlas Network\|title=North Korean human rights: the crisis that remains\|date=September 5, 2018\|url=https://www.atlasnetwork.org/articles/north-korean-human-rights-the-crisis-that-remains\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240120030643/https://www.atlasnetwork.org/articles/north-korean-human-rights-the-crisis-that-remains}}</ref><ref>{{Web citation\|author=Ken Silverstein\|newspaper=Washington Babylon\|title=Young Voices, the PR Shop That Launched the Career of North Korean Celebrity Defector Yeonmi Park, Helps American Journalists and Foreign “Dissidents" Peddle the Gospel of Capitalism\|date=2025-01-10\|url=https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250512184106/https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|quote=Young Voices isn’t a conventional business, though, but a political organization that exclusively recruits and promotes conservatives, such as its best known alumnus Yeonmi Park, the North Korean celebrity defector and fabulist it helped transform into a global right-wing star. Established in 2013 by the Atlas Network, a nonprofit based in the Virginia suburbs just outside of the capital that creates and connects a web of right-wing think tanks in the US and around the world, Young Voices subsequently spun off and currently operates as an independent organization. It remains closely affiliated with Atlas and has close ties to a number of prominent conservative outlets, including the Federalist Society, which it recently partnered with on a media fellowship program for law students. Casey Givens, the group’s President and Executive Director, is a former Policy Analyst for the Koch-funded Americans for Prosperity Foundation. Vice President Scott Barbee, the controlling shareholder of the investment firm Aegis Financial Corporation, and Treasurer Dan Grossman, the owner of a chain of office supply stores, both have board seats at Atlas. Young Voices received donations of about $2 million last year, according to its most recent nonprofit tax filing with the the IRS. It doesn’t disclose its donors, but they include Stand Together, which was founded by Charles Koch, and the Bradley Foundation, a leading funder of conservative causes.}}</ref>

	== Bourgeois Background ==		== Bourgeois Background ==
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	== Inconsistencies in story ==		== Inconsistencies in story ==
	Her stories as a defector are highly inconsistent and contain large amounts of false information.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref> Park claims that her best friend's mother was executed at a stadium in Hyesan in 2002<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Will Sommer\|title=A North Korean defector captivated U.S. media. Some question her story.\|date=2023\|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2023/07/16/yeonmi-park-conservative-defector-stories-questioned/\|archive-url=https://archive.is/bm8ni}}</ref>, but according to several other similar defectors, public executions in Hyesan only ever took place on the outskirts of the city, and there haven't been any public executions there since 1999. Park initially stated that the woman was executed for watching a James Bond movie, but later changed it to be a DVD from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]]. [[Andrei Lankov]], a [[Imperial core\|Western]] critic of the DPRK who writes from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]] (where praise of the DPRK is illegal), was skeptical of Park's claim that watching a Western movie would result in an execution.<ref name=":0" />		Her stories as a defector are highly inconsistent and contain large amounts of false information.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref> Park claims that her best friend's mother was executed at a stadium in Hyesan in 2002<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Will Sommer\|title=A North Korean defector captivated U.S. media. Some question her story.\|date=2023\|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2023/07/16/yeonmi-park-conservative-defector-stories-questioned/\|archive-url=https://archive.is/bm8ni}}</ref>, but according to several other similar defectors, public executions in Hyesan only ever took place on the outskirts of the city, and there haven't been any public executions there since 1999. Park initially stated that the woman was executed for watching a James Bond movie, but later changed it to be a DVD from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]]. [[Andrei Lankov]], a [[Imperial core\|Western]] critic of the DPRK who writes from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]] (where praise of the DPRK is illegal), was skeptical of Park's claim that watching a Western movie would result in an execution.<ref name=":0" /> Park's claims include ludicrous things such as having to push a 15-tonne train, that DPRK's plants all mysteriously turn poisonous in springtime forcing parents to feed deadly mud to their children, and that there is no ice cream in DPRK (provably false).<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Thom Waite\|newspaper=Dazed\|title=Yeonmi Park: is the DPRK defector and ‘enemy of the woke’ a western psy-op?\|date=2023-05-17\|url=https://www.dazeddigital.com/life-culture/article/59869/1/yeonmi-park-north-korea-defector-enemy-of-the-woke-psy-op-joe-rogan-memes\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230607065339/https://www.dazeddigital.com/life-culture/article/59869/1/yeonmi-park-north-korea-defector-enemy-of-the-woke-psy-op-joe-rogan-memes}}</ref>

	In January 2013, Park said that she never saw anyone starving in the DPRK. She later claimed that she saw people eating grass and insects to survive. This practice was attested to during the years of the [[Arduous March]], the years during which Park was living in the DPRK,<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=DPRK News Room\|title=Loyal Citizens of Pyongyang (서울의 평양 시민들)\|date=2024-08-16\|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_blPim4r-s\|quote=The defectors that are in their 20s and 30s right now from birth or childhood grew up not knowing what rice or meat is because they were born during the Arduous March. As soon as they were born, they only had corn, grass and tree bark to eat, and instead of going to school they had to trade in the market every day or go up the mountains to gather firewood.}}</ref> but it is unconfirmed whether Park remembers it firsthand or is only repeating stories she heard, as she herself would have been only five years old at the end of the Arduous March.		In January 2013, Park said that she never saw anyone starving in the DPRK. She later claimed that she saw people eating grass and insects to survive. This practice was attested to during the years of the [[Arduous March]], the years during which Park was living in the DPRK,<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=DPRK News Room\|title=Loyal Citizens of Pyongyang (서울의 평양 시민들)\|date=2024-08-16\|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_blPim4r-s\|quote=The defectors that are in their 20s and 30s right now from birth or childhood grew up not knowing what rice or meat is because they were born during the Arduous March. As soon as they were born, they only had corn, grass and tree bark to eat, and instead of going to school they had to trade in the market every day or go up the mountains to gather firewood.}}</ref> but it is unconfirmed whether Park remembers it firsthand or is only repeating stories she heard, as she herself would have been only five years old at the end of the Arduous March.
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	In an interview with North Korea Today, she said that she could not afford to go to school in the DPRK. In another interview with them, she talked about what she learned in school and said the DPRK had a free education system.<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=JooPark3782 Blog\|title=Yeonmi Park: The Defector Who Fooled the World\|date=2014-12-22\|url=http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328123802/http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-date=2022-03-28\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref> Park has claimed in one instance her family was very wealthy, and yet in another instance said her family was very poor.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Ken Silverstein\|newspaper=Washington Babylon\|title=Young Voices, the PR Shop That Launched the Career of North Korean Celebrity Defector Yeonmi Park, Helps American Journalists and Foreign “Dissidents" Peddle the Gospel of Capitalism\|date=2025-01-10\|url=https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250512184106/https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|quote=Park’s own accounts have shifted over time; in some, her family was wealthy and in others they was dirt poor, to take but one example.}}</ref>		In an interview with North Korea Today, she said that she could not afford to go to school in the DPRK. In another interview with them, she talked about what she learned in school and said the DPRK had a free education system.<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=JooPark3782 Blog\|title=Yeonmi Park: The Defector Who Fooled the World\|date=2014-12-22\|url=http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328123802/http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-date=2022-03-28\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref> Park has claimed in one instance her family was very wealthy, and yet in another instance said her family was very poor.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Ken Silverstein\|newspaper=Washington Babylon\|title=Young Voices, the PR Shop That Launched the Career of North Korean Celebrity Defector Yeonmi Park, Helps American Journalists and Foreign “Dissidents" Peddle the Gospel of Capitalism\|date=2025-01-10\|url=https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250512184106/https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|quote=Park’s own accounts have shifted over time; in some, her family was wealthy and in others they was dirt poor, to take but one example.}}</ref>

			Park's fictional storytelling can be explained by the economic incentive. The more extreme the stories told, the more money a defector is paid.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Jiyoung Song\|newspaper=The Guardian\|title=Why do North Korean defector testimonies so often fall apart?\|date=2015-10-13\|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/13/why-do-north-korean-defector-testimonies-so-often-fall-apart\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250625153327/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/13/why-do-north-korean-defector-testimonies-so-often-fall-apart\|quote=Cash payments in return for interviews with North Korean refugees have been standard practice in the field for years.

			Initially, the payment was to cover the cost of meals and local transport, which was approximately $30 in the late 1990s when I first began interviewing in China and South Korea. However, the fees had risen to $200 per hour by the time I attempted to interview people from North Korea in May 2014.

			A government official from the South Korean ministry of unification told me the range of fees could vary wildly, from $50-500 per hour, depending on the quality of information.

			... Cash payments in return for interviews with North Korean refugees have been standard practice in the field for years.

			Initially, the payment was to cover the cost of meals and local transport, which was approximately $30 in the late 1990s when I first began interviewing in China and South Korea. However, the fees had risen to $200 per hour by the time I attempted to interview people from North Korea in May 2014.

			A government official from the South Korean ministry of unification told me the range of fees could vary wildly, from $50-500 per hour, depending on the quality of information.

			... North Korean refugees are well aware of what the interviewer wants to hear.

			This practice also drives the demand for “saleable stories”: the more exclusive, shocking or emotional, the higher the fee.}}</ref><ref>{{Web citation\|author=Thom Waite\|newspaper=Dazed\|title=Yeonmi Park: is the DPRK defector and ‘enemy of the woke’ a western psy-op?\|date=2023-05-17\|url=https://www.dazeddigital.com/life-culture/article/59869/1/yeonmi-park-north-korea-defector-enemy-of-the-woke-psy-op-joe-rogan-memes\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230607065339/https://www.dazeddigital.com/life-culture/article/59869/1/yeonmi-park-north-korea-defector-enemy-of-the-woke-psy-op-joe-rogan-memes\|quote=Back in 2017, the South Korean government quadrupled the reward it pays North Korean defectors for “useful information” on the regime, to just under £700,000. In both South Korea and the US, meanwhile, bestselling memoirs and sensational speaking engagements help convert trauma into cash...}}</ref>

	== References ==		== References ==

Charhapiti: /* Political Career */

2025-09-15T06:09:56Z

Political Career

← Older revision		Revision as of 06:09, 15 September 2025
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	'''Park Yeonmi''' (last name '''Park''', though the order is often rendered as '''Yeonmi Park''' in [[Western media]]) is known for "defecting" (emigrating without warning) from the [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] (DPRK). She now resides in the [[United States of America]]. Known as a “celebrity defector”, she is one of the most well-known defectors from the DPRK.		'''Park Yeonmi''' (last name '''Park''', though the order is often rendered as '''Yeonmi Park''' in [[Western media]]) is known for "defecting" (emigrating without warning) from the [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] (DPRK). She now resides in the [[United States of America]]. Known as a “celebrity defector”, she is one of the most well-known defectors from the DPRK.

	== ~~Political Career~~ ==		== Fame ==

	She first gained prominence in 2013 by presenting some of the most extreme and absurd testimonies, and has been able to build a cult following and a very lucrative career as the posterchild for anti-Communism. She is cited more than any other defector because she says exactly what anti-Communists want to hear about a closed-off, Communist country. Today, she is a culture warrior who weaponizes her background for personal gain. As her credibility waned, Park settled into her niche as a right-wing ideologue, standing side-by-side figures such as Jordan Peterson, who wrote the foreword to her latest book: ''While Time Remains: A North Korean Defector's Search for Freedom in America''.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Ken Silverstein\|newspaper=Washington Babylon\|title=Young Voices, the PR Shop That Launched the Career of North Korean Celebrity Defector Yeonmi Park, Helps American Journalists and Foreign “Dissidents" Peddle the Gospel of Capitalism\|date=2025-01-10\|url=https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250512184106/https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched}}</ref> Park has claimed the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". An emblematic example of this in action from The Telegraph, a right-wing British media network:		She first gained prominence in 2013 by presenting some of the most extreme and absurd testimonies, and has been able to build a cult following and a very lucrative career as the posterchild for anti-Communism. She is cited more than any other defector because she says exactly what anti-Communists want to hear about a closed-off, Communist country. Today, she is a culture warrior who weaponizes her background for personal gain. As her credibility waned, Park settled into her niche as a right-wing ideologue, standing side-by-side figures such as Jordan Peterson, who wrote the foreword to her latest book: ''While Time Remains: A North Korean Defector's Search for Freedom in America''.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Ken Silverstein\|newspaper=Washington Babylon\|title=Young Voices, the PR Shop That Launched the Career of North Korean Celebrity Defector Yeonmi Park, Helps American Journalists and Foreign “Dissidents" Peddle the Gospel of Capitalism\|date=2025-01-10\|url=https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250512184106/https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched}}</ref> Park has claimed the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". An emblematic example of this in action from The Telegraph, a right-wing British media network:

Charhapiti at 06:03, 15 September 2025

2025-09-15T06:03:52Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 06:03, 15 September 2025
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	{{Infobox person\|name=Park Yeonmi\|native_name=박연미\|birth_date=4 October 1993\|birth_place=[[Hyesan]], [[Ryanggang Province]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea\|North Korea]]\|image=YeonmiPark 2024.jpg\|nationality=Korean\|known=Spreading [[misinformation]] about North Korea}}		{{Infobox person\|name=Park Yeonmi\|native_name=박연미\|birth_date=4 October 1993\|birth_place=[[Hyesan]], [[Ryanggang Province]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea\|North Korea]]\|image=YeonmiPark 2024.jpg\|nationality=Korean\|known=Spreading [[misinformation]] about North Korea}}
	[[File:Yeonmi Park.png\|thumb\|Park Yeonmi in 2013, when she first gained prominence as a defector.]]		[[File:Yeonmi Park.png\|thumb\|Park Yeonmi in 2013, when she first gained prominence as a defector.]]
	'''Park Yeonmi''' (last name '''Park''', though the order is often rendered as '''Yeonmi Park''' in [[Western media]]) is known for "defecting" (emigrating without warning) from the [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] (DPRK). She ~~first gained prominence in 2013 for her story, and~~ now resides in the [[United States of America]]. ~~Over time~~, she ~~moved further~~ to the ~~[[Right~~-wing ~~politics~~\|~~right]]~~ and ~~is currently backed by a [[United States~~ of ~~America~~\|U.S.]] [[~~Libertarianism\|libertarian~~]] ~~organization called~~ the ~~[[Atlas Foundation]] as~~ the ~~face~~ of ~~manufacturing consent for regime change~~ in Korea. ~~Park has also claimed~~ the U.S. has ~~"fallen~~ to [[~~socialism~~]]". ~~Her stories~~ as a ~~defector are highly inconsistent~~ and ~~contain large amounts~~ of ~~false information~~.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>		'''Park Yeonmi''' (last name '''Park''', though the order is often rendered as '''Yeonmi Park''' in [[Western media]]) is known for "defecting" (emigrating without warning) from the [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] (DPRK). She now resides in the [[United States of America]]. Known as a “celebrity defector”, she is one of the most well-known defectors from the DPRK.

			== Political Career ==

			She first gained prominence in 2013 by presenting some of the most extreme and absurd testimonies, and has been able to build a cult following and a very lucrative career as the posterchild for anti-Communism. She is cited more than any other defector because she says exactly what anti-Communists want to hear about a closed-off, Communist country. Today, she is a culture warrior who weaponizes her background for personal gain. As her credibility waned, Park settled into her niche as a right-wing ideologue, standing side-by-side figures such as Jordan Peterson, who wrote the foreword to her latest book: ''While Time Remains: A North Korean Defector's Search for Freedom in America''.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Ken Silverstein\|newspaper=Washington Babylon\|title=Young Voices, the PR Shop That Launched the Career of North Korean Celebrity Defector Yeonmi Park, Helps American Journalists and Foreign “Dissidents" Peddle the Gospel of Capitalism\|date=2025-01-10\|url=https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250512184106/https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched}}</ref> Park has claimed the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". An emblematic example of this in action from The Telegraph, a right-wing British media network:

			<blockquote>However, since relocating to America, and earning a degree from Columbia University, she has sounded the alarm over “cancel culture” and political influences on the country’s education system… In an interview with The Telegraph, Ms Park said she was shocked by the political ideology promoted by professors and fellow students at the Ivy League university. She claimed that while studying for a human rights degree, she was taught that Jane Austen “promoted white supremacy”, maths was “racist” and debate over trans issues were silenced… Ms Park was particularly critical of the way in which discussions around sex and gender were policed on campus, calling it “crazier than North Korea”.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Rozina Sabur\|title=‘Woke’ US schools scarier than North Korea, says defector\|date=2023\|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2023/03/26/woke-us-schools-scarier-north-korea-says-defector/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250709051456/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2023/03/26/woke-us-schools-scarier-north-korea-says-defector/}}</ref></blockquote> She told the New York Times that she is working for [[Turning Point USA]].<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Will Sommer\|title=A North Korean defector captivated U.S. media. Some question her story.\|date=2023\|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2023/07/16/yeonmi-park-conservative-defector-stories-questioned/\|archive-url=https://archive.is/bm8ni}}</ref> Park also has material ties to the [[Atlas Network]], a conservative organisation which has received funding from the US State Department and the United States Congress.<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=Intelligence Online .com\|title=Young Voices helps conservative US writers and foreign dissidents become champions of America\|date=28/07/2023 at 04:00 GMT\|url=https://www.intelligenceonline.com/corporate-intelligence/2023/07/28/young-voices-helps-conservative-us-writers-and-foreign-dissidents-become-champions-of-america,110008329-gra\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250418190008/https://www.intelligenceonline.com/corporate-intelligence/2023/07/28/young-voices-helps-conservative-us-writers-and-foreign-dissidents-become-champions-of-america,110008329-gra\|quote=Part talent agency, part PR firm, Young Voices is closely affiliated with the Koch-funded Atlas Network, and its most famous graduate is celebrity North Korean defector Yeonmi Park.}}</ref><ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=Atlas Network\|title=North Korean human rights: the crisis that remains\|date=September 5, 2018\|url=https://www.atlasnetwork.org/articles/north-korean-human-rights-the-crisis-that-remains\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240120030643/https://www.atlasnetwork.org/articles/north-korean-human-rights-the-crisis-that-remains}}</ref><ref>{{Web citation\|author=Ken Silverstein\|newspaper=Washington Babylon\|title=Young Voices, the PR Shop That Launched the Career of North Korean Celebrity Defector Yeonmi Park, Helps American Journalists and Foreign “Dissidents" Peddle the Gospel of Capitalism\|date=2025-01-10\|url=https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250512184106/https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|quote=Young Voices isn’t a conventional business, though, but a political organization that exclusively recruits and promotes conservatives, such as its best known alumnus Yeonmi Park, the North Korean celebrity defector and fabulist it helped transform into a global right-wing star. Established in 2013 by the Atlas Network, a nonprofit based in the Virginia suburbs just outside of the capital that creates and connects a web of right-wing think tanks in the US and around the world, Young Voices subsequently spun off and currently operates as an independent organization. It remains closely affiliated with Atlas and has close ties to a number of prominent conservative outlets, including the Federalist Society, which it recently partnered with on a media fellowship program for law students. Casey Givens, the group’s President and Executive Director, is a former Policy Analyst for the Koch-funded Americans for Prosperity Foundation. Vice President Scott Barbee, the controlling shareholder of the investment firm Aegis Financial Corporation, and Treasurer Dan Grossman, the owner of a chain of office supply stores, both have board seats at Atlas. Young Voices received donations of about $2 million last year, according to its most recent nonprofit tax filing with the the IRS. It doesn’t disclose its donors, but they include Stand Together, which was founded by Charles Koch, and the Bradley Foundation, a leading funder of conservative causes.}}</ref>

			== Bourgeois Background ==
			Yeonmi Park has been called the Paris Hilton of North Korea, and lived a life of privilege and luxury among the upper echelon of society in the DPRK before leaving to begin her career as a celebrity defector in the West.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05\|quote=}}</ref>

	== Inconsistencies in story ==		== Inconsistencies in story ==
	Park claims that her best friend's mother was executed at a stadium in Hyesan in 2002, but according to several other similar defectors, public executions in Hyesan only ever took place on the outskirts of the city, and there haven't been any public executions there since 1999. Park initially stated that the woman was executed for watching a James Bond movie, but later changed it to be a DVD from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]]. [[Andrei Lankov]], a [[Imperial core\|Western]] critic of the DPRK who writes from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]] (where praise of the DPRK is illegal), was skeptical of Park's claim that watching a Western movie would result in an execution.<ref name=":0" />		Her stories as a defector are highly inconsistent and contain large amounts of false information.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref> Park claims that her best friend's mother was executed at a stadium in Hyesan in 2002<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Will Sommer\|title=A North Korean defector captivated U.S. media. Some question her story.\|date=2023\|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2023/07/16/yeonmi-park-conservative-defector-stories-questioned/\|archive-url=https://archive.is/bm8ni}}</ref>, but according to several other similar defectors, public executions in Hyesan only ever took place on the outskirts of the city, and there haven't been any public executions there since 1999. Park initially stated that the woman was executed for watching a James Bond movie, but later changed it to be a DVD from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]]. [[Andrei Lankov]], a [[Imperial core\|Western]] critic of the DPRK who writes from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]] (where praise of the DPRK is illegal), was skeptical of Park's claim that watching a Western movie would result in an execution.<ref name=":0" />

	In January 2013, Park said that she never saw anyone starving in the DPRK. She later claimed that she saw people eating grass and insects to survive. This practice was attested to during the years of the [[Arduous March]], the years during which Park was living in the DPRK,<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=DPRK News Room\|title=Loyal Citizens of Pyongyang (서울의 평양 시민들)\|date=2024-08-16\|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_blPim4r-s\|quote=The defectors that are in their 20s and 30s right now from birth or childhood grew up not knowing what rice or meat is because they were born during the Arduous March. As soon as they were born, they only had corn, grass and tree bark to eat, and instead of going to school they had to trade in the market every day or go up the mountains to gather firewood.}}</ref> but it is unconfirmed whether Park remembers it firsthand or is only repeating stories she heard, as she herself would have been only five years old at the end of the Arduous March.		In January 2013, Park said that she never saw anyone starving in the DPRK. She later claimed that she saw people eating grass and insects to survive. This practice was attested to during the years of the [[Arduous March]], the years during which Park was living in the DPRK,<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=DPRK News Room\|title=Loyal Citizens of Pyongyang (서울의 평양 시민들)\|date=2024-08-16\|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_blPim4r-s\|quote=The defectors that are in their 20s and 30s right now from birth or childhood grew up not knowing what rice or meat is because they were born during the Arduous March. As soon as they were born, they only had corn, grass and tree bark to eat, and instead of going to school they had to trade in the market every day or go up the mountains to gather firewood.}}</ref> but it is unconfirmed whether Park remembers it firsthand or is only repeating stories she heard, as she herself would have been only five years old at the end of the Arduous March.

	In 2014, she said that she defected to [[China]] from the DPRK with her mother and father. She later changed the story and claimed that her father stayed behind.		In 2014, she said that she defected to [[China]] from the DPRK with her mother and father. She later changed the story and claimed that her father stayed behind.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Will Sommer\|title=A North Korean defector captivated U.S. media. Some question her story.\|date=2023\|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2023/07/16/yeonmi-park-conservative-defector-stories-questioned/\|archive-url=https://archive.is/bm8ni}}</ref>

	In an interview with North Korea Today, she said that she could not afford to go to school in the DPRK. In another interview with them, she talked about what she learned in school and said the DPRK had a free education system.<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=JooPark3782 Blog\|title=Yeonmi Park: The Defector Who Fooled the World\|date=2014-12-22\|url=http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328123802/http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-date=2022-03-28\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>		In an interview with North Korea Today, she said that she could not afford to go to school in the DPRK. In another interview with them, she talked about what she learned in school and said the DPRK had a free education system.<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=JooPark3782 Blog\|title=Yeonmi Park: The Defector Who Fooled the World\|date=2014-12-22\|url=http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328123802/http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-date=2022-03-28\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref> Park has claimed in one instance her family was very wealthy, and yet in another instance said her family was very poor.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Ken Silverstein\|newspaper=Washington Babylon\|title=Young Voices, the PR Shop That Launched the Career of North Korean Celebrity Defector Yeonmi Park, Helps American Journalists and Foreign “Dissidents" Peddle the Gospel of Capitalism\|date=2025-01-10\|url=https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250512184106/https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|quote=Park’s own accounts have shifted over time; in some, her family was wealthy and in others they was dirt poor, to take but one example.}}</ref>

	== References ==		== References ==

CriticalResist at 11:25, 26 May 2025

2025-05-26T11:25:26Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 11:25, 26 May 2025
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	{{Infobox person\|name=Park Yeonmi\|native_name=박연미\|birth_date=4 October 1993\|birth_place=[[Hyesan]], [[Ryanggang Province]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea\|North Korea]]\|image=YeonmiPark 2024.jpg\|nationality=Korean\|known=Spreading [[misinformation]] about North Korea}}		{{Infobox person\|name=Park Yeonmi\|native_name=박연미\|birth_date=4 October 1993\|birth_place=[[Hyesan]], [[Ryanggang Province]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea\|North Korea]]\|image=YeonmiPark 2024.jpg\|nationality=Korean\|known=Spreading [[misinformation]] about North Korea}}
	[[File:Yeonmi Park.png\|thumb\|Park Yeonmi in 2013, when she first gained prominence as a defector.]]		[[File:Yeonmi Park.png\|thumb\|Park Yeonmi in 2013, when she first gained prominence as a defector.]]
	'''Park Yeonmi''' (last name '''Park''', though the order is often rendered as '''Yeonmi Park''' in [[Western media]]) is known for "defecting" (emigrating without warning) from the [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] (DPRK). She first gained prominence in 2013 for her story, and now resides in the [[United States of America]]. Over time, she moved further to the [[Right-wing politics\|right]] and is currently backed by a [[United States of America\|U.S.]] [[Libertarianism\|libertarian]] organization called the [[Atlas Foundation]]. Park also ~~claims~~ the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". Her stories as a defector are highly inconsistent and contain large amounts of false information.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>		'''Park Yeonmi''' (last name '''Park''', though the order is often rendered as '''Yeonmi Park''' in [[Western media]]) is known for "defecting" (emigrating without warning) from the [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] (DPRK). She first gained prominence in 2013 for her story, and now resides in the [[United States of America]]. Over time, she moved further to the [[Right-wing politics\|right]] and is currently backed by a [[United States of America\|U.S.]] [[Libertarianism\|libertarian]] organization called the [[Atlas Foundation]] as the face of manufacturing consent for regime change in Korea. Park has also claimed the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". Her stories as a defector are highly inconsistent and contain large amounts of false information.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>

	== Inconsistencies in story ==		== Inconsistencies in story ==

CriticalResist at 11:24, 26 May 2025

2025-05-26T11:24:21Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 11:24, 26 May 2025
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	{{Infobox person\|name=Park Yeonmi\|native_name=박연미\|birth_date=4 October 1993\|birth_place=[[Hyesan]], [[Ryanggang Province]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea\|North Korea]]\|image=YeonmiPark 2024.jpg\|nationality=Korean\|known=Spreading [[misinformation]] about North Korea}}		{{Infobox person\|name=Park Yeonmi\|native_name=박연미\|birth_date=4 October 1993\|birth_place=[[Hyesan]], [[Ryanggang Province]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea\|North Korea]]\|image=YeonmiPark 2024.jpg\|nationality=Korean\|known=Spreading [[misinformation]] about North Korea}}
	[[File:Yeonmi Park.png\|thumb\|Park Yeonmi in 2013, when she first gained prominence as a defector.]]		[[File:Yeonmi Park.png\|thumb\|Park Yeonmi in 2013, when she first gained prominence as a defector.]]
	'''Park Yeonmi''' (last name '''Park''', though the order ~~of her names~~ is often rendered as '''Yeonmi Park''' in [[Western media]]) is ~~a defector~~ from the [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] (DPRK). She first gained prominence in 2013, ~~eventually moving to~~ the [[United States of America]] ~~where she currently resides~~. Over time, she moved further to the right and is currently backed by a [[United States of America\|U.S.]] [[Libertarianism\|libertarian]] organization called the [[Atlas Foundation]]. Park also claims the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". Her stories as a defector are highly inconsistent and contain large amounts of false information.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>		'''Park Yeonmi''' (last name '''Park''', though the order is often rendered as '''Yeonmi Park''' in [[Western media]]) is known for "defecting" (emigrating without warning) from the [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] (DPRK). She first gained prominence in 2013 for her story, and now resides in the [[United States of America]]. Over time, she moved further to the [[Right-wing politics\|right]] and is currently backed by a [[United States of America\|U.S.]] [[Libertarianism\|libertarian]] organization called the [[Atlas Foundation]]. Park also claims the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". Her stories as a defector are highly inconsistent and contain large amounts of false information.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>

	== Inconsistencies in ~~stories~~ ==		== Inconsistencies in story ==
	Park claims that her best friend's mother was executed at a stadium in Hyesan in 2002, but according to several other ~~North Korean~~ defectors, public executions in Hyesan only ever took place on the outskirts of the city, and there haven't been any public executions there since 1999. Park initially stated that the woman was executed for watching a James Bond movie, but later ~~claimed~~ it ~~was~~ a DVD from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]]. [[Andrei Lankov]], ~~one~~ of the ~~world's foremost experts~~ of the DPRK ~~and a critic of the regime~~, was ~~extremely sceptical~~ of ~~the notion~~ that watching a Western movie would result in an execution.<ref name=":0" />		Park claims that her best friend's mother was executed at a stadium in Hyesan in 2002, but according to several other similar defectors, public executions in Hyesan only ever took place on the outskirts of the city, and there haven't been any public executions there since 1999. Park initially stated that the woman was executed for watching a James Bond movie, but later changed it to be a DVD from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]]. [[Andrei Lankov]], a [[Imperial core\|Western]] critic of the DPRK who writes from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]] (where praise of the DPRK is illegal), was skeptical of Park's claim that watching a Western movie would result in an execution.<ref name=":0" />

	In ~~2014~~, Park said that she ~~defected~~ to [[~~China~~]] from the ~~DPRK with her mother~~ and ~~father~~. ~~She later changed~~ the ~~story and claimed that her father stayed behind~~.		In January 2013, Park said that she never saw anyone starving in the DPRK. She later claimed that she saw people eating grass and insects to survive. This practice was attested to during the years of the [[Arduous March]], the years during which Park was living in the DPRK,<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=DPRK News Room\|title=Loyal Citizens of Pyongyang (서울의 평양 시민들)\|date=2024-08-16\|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_blPim4r-s\|quote=The defectors that are in their 20s and 30s right now from birth or childhood grew up not knowing what rice or meat is because they were born during the Arduous March. As soon as they were born, they only had corn, grass and tree bark to eat, and instead of going to school they had to trade in the market every day or go up the mountains to gather firewood.}}</ref> but it is unconfirmed whether Park remembers it firsthand or is only repeating stories she heard, as she herself would have been only five years old at the end of the Arduous March.

	In ~~January 2013~~, she said that she ~~never saw anyone starving in the DPRK. She later claimed that she saw people eating grass and insects to survive. This practice was attested~~ to ~~during the years of the~~ [[~~Arduous March~~]]~~, the years during which Park was living in~~ the DPRK~~,<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=DPRK News Room\|title=Loyal Citizens of Pyongyang (서울의 평양 시민들)\|date=2024-08-16\|url=https://www~~.~~youtube.com/watch?v=b_blPim4r-s\|quote=The defectors that are in their 20s and 30s right now from birth or childhood grew up not knowing what rice or meat is because they were born during~~ the ~~Arduous March. As soon as they were born, they only had corn, grass~~ and tree bark to eat, and instead of going to school they had to trade in the market every day or go up the mountains to gather firewood.}}</ref> but it is unconfirmed whether Park saw it firsthand or is only repeating stories she heard from that ~~era~~.		In 2014, she said that she defected to [[China]] from the DPRK with her mother and father. She later changed the story and claimed that her father stayed behind.

	In an interview with North Korea Today, she said that she could not afford to go to school in the DPRK. In another interview with them, she talked about what she learned in school and said the DPRK had a free education system.<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=JooPark3782 Blog\|title=Yeonmi Park: The Defector Who Fooled the World\|date=2014-12-22\|url=http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328123802/http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-date=2022-03-28\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>		In an interview with North Korea Today, she said that she could not afford to go to school in the DPRK. In another interview with them, she talked about what she learned in school and said the DPRK had a free education system.<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=JooPark3782 Blog\|title=Yeonmi Park: The Defector Who Fooled the World\|date=2014-12-22\|url=http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328123802/http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-date=2022-03-28\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>

Literallywho Ingodsname at 10:35, 26 May 2025

2025-05-26T10:35:14Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:35, 26 May 2025
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	== Inconsistencies in stories ==		== Inconsistencies in stories ==
	Park claims that her best friend's mother was executed at a stadium in Hyesan in 2002, but there ~~have not~~ been any public executions ~~in the DPRK~~ since 1999. Park initially ~~said~~ that ~~she~~ was executed for watching a James Bond movie, but later ~~said~~ it was a DVD from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]]. ~~Both~~ of ~~these actions~~ would ~~likely not lead to~~ an execution ~~or even an arrest~~.<ref name=":0" />		Park claims that her best friend's mother was executed at a stadium in Hyesan in 2002, but according to several other North Korean defectors, public executions in Hyesan only ever took place on the outskirts of the city, and there haven't been any public executions there since 1999. Park initially stated that the woman was executed for watching a James Bond movie, but later claimed it was a DVD from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]]. [[Andrei Lankov]], one of the world's foremost experts of the DPRK and a critic of the regime, was extremely sceptical of the notion that watching a Western movie would result in an execution.<ref name=":0" />

	In 2014, Park said that she defected to [[China]] from the DPRK with her mother and father. She later changed the story and claimed that her father stayed behind.		In 2014, Park said that she defected to [[China]] from the DPRK with her mother and father. She later changed the story and claimed that her father stayed behind.

CriticalResist: fleshed out page a little bit

2025-02-27T02:16:44Z

fleshed out page a little bit

← Older revision		Revision as of 02:16, 27 February 2025
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	{{Infobox person\|name=Park Yeonmi\|native_name=박연미\|birth_date=4 October 1993\|birth_place=[[Hyesan]], [[Ryanggang Province]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea\|North Korea]]\|image=~~Yeonmi Park~~.~~png~~\|nationality=Korean\|known=Spreading [[misinformation]] about North Korea}}		{{Infobox person\|name=Park Yeonmi\|native_name=박연미\|birth_date=4 October 1993\|birth_place=[[Hyesan]], [[Ryanggang Province]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea\|North Korea]]\|image=YeonmiPark 2024.jpg\|nationality=Korean\|known=Spreading [[misinformation]] about North Korea}}
			[[File:Yeonmi Park.png\|thumb\|Park Yeonmi in 2013, when she first gained prominence as a defector.]]
	'''Park Yeonmi''' is a defector from the DPRK. She is backed by a [[United States of America\|U.S.]] [[Libertarianism\|libertarian]] organization called the [[Atlas Foundation]]. ~~She believes~~ the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". Her stories are highly inconsistent and contain large amounts of false information.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>		'''Park Yeonmi''' (last name '''Park''', though the order of her names is often rendered as '''Yeonmi Park''' in [[Western media]]) is a defector from the [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] (DPRK). She first gained prominence in 2013, eventually moving to the [[United States of America]] where she currently resides. Over time, she moved further to the right and is currently backed by a [[United States of America\|U.S.]] [[Libertarianism\|libertarian]] organization called the [[Atlas Foundation]]. Park also claims the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". Her stories as a defector are highly inconsistent and contain large amounts of false information.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>

	== Inconsistencies in stories ==		== Inconsistencies in stories ==
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	In 2014, Park said that she defected to [[China]] from the DPRK with her mother and father. She later changed the story and claimed that her father stayed behind.		In 2014, Park said that she defected to [[China]] from the DPRK with her mother and father. She later changed the story and claimed that her father stayed behind.

	In January 2013, she said that she never saw anyone starving in the DPRK. She later claimed that she saw people eating grass and insects to survive.		In January 2013, she said that she never saw anyone starving in the DPRK. She later claimed that she saw people eating grass and insects to survive. This practice was attested to during the years of the [[Arduous March]], the years during which Park was living in the DPRK,<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=DPRK News Room\|title=Loyal Citizens of Pyongyang (서울의 평양 시민들)\|date=2024-08-16\|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_blPim4r-s\|quote=The defectors that are in their 20s and 30s right now from birth or childhood grew up not knowing what rice or meat is because they were born during the Arduous March. As soon as they were born, they only had corn, grass and tree bark to eat, and instead of going to school they had to trade in the market every day or go up the mountains to gather firewood.}}</ref> but it is unconfirmed whether Park saw it firsthand or is only repeating stories she heard from that era.

	In an interview with North Korea Today, she said that she could not afford to go to school in the DPRK. In another interview with them, she talked about what she learned in school and said the DPRK had a free education system.<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=JooPark3782 Blog\|title=Yeonmi Park: The Defector Who Fooled the World\|date=2014-12-22\|url=http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328123802/http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-date=2022-03-28\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>		In an interview with North Korea Today, she said that she could not afford to go to school in the DPRK. In another interview with them, she talked about what she learned in school and said the DPRK had a free education system.<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=JooPark3782 Blog\|title=Yeonmi Park: The Defector Who Fooled the World\|date=2014-12-22\|url=http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328123802/http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-date=2022-03-28\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>

Literallywho Ingodsname at 14:34, 26 February 2025

2025-02-26T14:34:43Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 14:34, 26 February 2025
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	{{Infobox person\|name=Yeonmi ~~Park~~\|native_name=박연미\|birth_date=4 October 1993\|birth_place=Hyesan, Ryanggang Province, [[~~DPRK~~]]\|image=Yeonmi Park.png\|nationality=Korean\|known=~~Promoting~~ [[~~Anti-communism~~]]}}		{{Infobox person\|name=Park Yeonmi\|native_name=박연미\|birth_date=4 October 1993\|birth_place=[[Hyesan]], [[Ryanggang Province]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea\|North Korea]]\|image=Yeonmi Park.png\|nationality=Korean\|known=Spreading [[misinformation]] about North Korea}}

	'''Yeonmi ~~Park~~''' is a defector from the DPRK. She is backed by a [[United States of America\|U.S.]] [[Libertarianism\|libertarian]] organization called the [[Atlas Foundation]]. She believes the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". Her stories are highly inconsistent and contain large amounts of false information.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>		'''Park Yeonmi''' is a defector from the DPRK. She is backed by a [[United States of America\|U.S.]] [[Libertarianism\|libertarian]] organization called the [[Atlas Foundation]]. She believes the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". Her stories are highly inconsistent and contain large amounts of false information.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>

	== Inconsistencies in stories ==		== Inconsistencies in stories ==

Literallywho Ingodsname: Literallywho Ingodsname moved page Yeonmi Park to Park Yeonmi over redirect

2025-02-26T14:26:02Z

Literallywho Ingodsname moved page Yeonmi Park to Park Yeonmi over redirect

← Older revision	Revision as of 14:26, 26 February 2025
(No difference)

ComradeSyntrofos at 14:32, 26 October 2023

2023-10-26T14:32:37Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 14:32, 26 October 2023
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	{{Infobox person\|name=Yeonmi Park\|native_name=박연미\|birth_date=4 October 1993\|birth_place=Hyesan, Ryanggang Province, [[DPRK]]\|image=Yeonmi Park.png\|nationality=Korean}}		{{Infobox person\|name=Yeonmi Park\|native_name=박연미\|birth_date=4 October 1993\|birth_place=Hyesan, Ryanggang Province, [[DPRK]]\|image=Yeonmi Park.png\|nationality=Korean\|known=Promoting [[Anti-communism]]}}

	'''Yeonmi Park''' is a defector from the DPRK. She is backed by a [[United States of America\|U.S.]] [[Libertarianism\|libertarian]] organization called the [[Atlas Foundation]]. She believes the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". Her stories are highly inconsistent and contain large amounts of false information.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>		'''Yeonmi Park''' is a defector from the DPRK. She is backed by a [[United States of America\|U.S.]] [[Libertarianism\|libertarian]] organization called the [[Atlas Foundation]]. She believes the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". Her stories are highly inconsistent and contain large amounts of false information.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>

← Older revision		Revision as of 06:03, 15 September 2025
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	{{Infobox person\|name=Park Yeonmi\|native_name=박연미\|birth_date=4 October 1993\|birth_place=[[Hyesan]], [[Ryanggang Province]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea\|North Korea]]\|image=YeonmiPark 2024.jpg\|nationality=Korean\|known=Spreading [[misinformation]] about North Korea}}		{{Infobox person\|name=Park Yeonmi\|native_name=박연미\|birth_date=4 October 1993\|birth_place=[[Hyesan]], [[Ryanggang Province]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea\|North Korea]]\|image=YeonmiPark 2024.jpg\|nationality=Korean\|known=Spreading [[misinformation]] about North Korea}}
	[[File:Yeonmi Park.png\|thumb\|Park Yeonmi in 2013, when she first gained prominence as a defector.]]		[[File:Yeonmi Park.png\|thumb\|Park Yeonmi in 2013, when she first gained prominence as a defector.]]
	'''Park Yeonmi''' (last name '''Park''', though the order is often rendered as '''Yeonmi Park''' in [[Western media]]) is known for "defecting" (emigrating without warning) from the [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] (DPRK). She ~~first gained prominence in 2013 for her story, and~~ now resides in the [[United States of America]]. ~~Over time~~, she ~~moved further~~ to the ~~[[Right~~-wing ~~politics~~\|~~right]]~~ and ~~is currently backed by a [[United States~~ of ~~America~~\|U.S.]] [[~~Libertarianism\|libertarian~~]] ~~organization called~~ the ~~[[Atlas Foundation]] as~~ the ~~face~~ of ~~manufacturing consent for regime change~~ in Korea. ~~Park has also claimed~~ the U.S. has ~~"fallen~~ to [[~~socialism~~]]". ~~Her stories~~ as a ~~defector are highly inconsistent~~ and ~~contain large amounts~~ of ~~false information~~.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>		'''Park Yeonmi''' (last name '''Park''', though the order is often rendered as '''Yeonmi Park''' in [[Western media]]) is known for "defecting" (emigrating without warning) from the [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] (DPRK). She now resides in the [[United States of America]]. Known as a “celebrity defector”, she is one of the most well-known defectors from the DPRK.

			== Political Career ==

			She first gained prominence in 2013 by presenting some of the most extreme and absurd testimonies, and has been able to build a cult following and a very lucrative career as the posterchild for anti-Communism. She is cited more than any other defector because she says exactly what anti-Communists want to hear about a closed-off, Communist country. Today, she is a culture warrior who weaponizes her background for personal gain. As her credibility waned, Park settled into her niche as a right-wing ideologue, standing side-by-side figures such as Jordan Peterson, who wrote the foreword to her latest book: ''While Time Remains: A North Korean Defector's Search for Freedom in America''.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Ken Silverstein\|newspaper=Washington Babylon\|title=Young Voices, the PR Shop That Launched the Career of North Korean Celebrity Defector Yeonmi Park, Helps American Journalists and Foreign “Dissidents" Peddle the Gospel of Capitalism\|date=2025-01-10\|url=https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250512184106/https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched}}</ref> Park has claimed the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". An emblematic example of this in action from The Telegraph, a right-wing British media network:

			<blockquote>However, since relocating to America, and earning a degree from Columbia University, she has sounded the alarm over “cancel culture” and political influences on the country’s education system… In an interview with The Telegraph, Ms Park said she was shocked by the political ideology promoted by professors and fellow students at the Ivy League university. She claimed that while studying for a human rights degree, she was taught that Jane Austen “promoted white supremacy”, maths was “racist” and debate over trans issues were silenced… Ms Park was particularly critical of the way in which discussions around sex and gender were policed on campus, calling it “crazier than North Korea”.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Rozina Sabur\|title=‘Woke’ US schools scarier than North Korea, says defector\|date=2023\|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2023/03/26/woke-us-schools-scarier-north-korea-says-defector/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250709051456/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2023/03/26/woke-us-schools-scarier-north-korea-says-defector/}}</ref></blockquote> She told the New York Times that she is working for [[Turning Point USA]].<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Will Sommer\|title=A North Korean defector captivated U.S. media. Some question her story.\|date=2023\|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2023/07/16/yeonmi-park-conservative-defector-stories-questioned/\|archive-url=https://archive.is/bm8ni}}</ref> Park also has material ties to the [[Atlas Network]], a conservative organisation which has received funding from the US State Department and the United States Congress.<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=Intelligence Online .com\|title=Young Voices helps conservative US writers and foreign dissidents become champions of America\|date=28/07/2023 at 04:00 GMT\|url=https://www.intelligenceonline.com/corporate-intelligence/2023/07/28/young-voices-helps-conservative-us-writers-and-foreign-dissidents-become-champions-of-america,110008329-gra\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250418190008/https://www.intelligenceonline.com/corporate-intelligence/2023/07/28/young-voices-helps-conservative-us-writers-and-foreign-dissidents-become-champions-of-america,110008329-gra\|quote=Part talent agency, part PR firm, Young Voices is closely affiliated with the Koch-funded Atlas Network, and its most famous graduate is celebrity North Korean defector Yeonmi Park.}}</ref><ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=Atlas Network\|title=North Korean human rights: the crisis that remains\|date=September 5, 2018\|url=https://www.atlasnetwork.org/articles/north-korean-human-rights-the-crisis-that-remains\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240120030643/https://www.atlasnetwork.org/articles/north-korean-human-rights-the-crisis-that-remains}}</ref><ref>{{Web citation\|author=Ken Silverstein\|newspaper=Washington Babylon\|title=Young Voices, the PR Shop That Launched the Career of North Korean Celebrity Defector Yeonmi Park, Helps American Journalists and Foreign “Dissidents" Peddle the Gospel of Capitalism\|date=2025-01-10\|url=https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250512184106/https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|quote=Young Voices isn’t a conventional business, though, but a political organization that exclusively recruits and promotes conservatives, such as its best known alumnus Yeonmi Park, the North Korean celebrity defector and fabulist it helped transform into a global right-wing star. Established in 2013 by the Atlas Network, a nonprofit based in the Virginia suburbs just outside of the capital that creates and connects a web of right-wing think tanks in the US and around the world, Young Voices subsequently spun off and currently operates as an independent organization. It remains closely affiliated with Atlas and has close ties to a number of prominent conservative outlets, including the Federalist Society, which it recently partnered with on a media fellowship program for law students. Casey Givens, the group’s President and Executive Director, is a former Policy Analyst for the Koch-funded Americans for Prosperity Foundation. Vice President Scott Barbee, the controlling shareholder of the investment firm Aegis Financial Corporation, and Treasurer Dan Grossman, the owner of a chain of office supply stores, both have board seats at Atlas. Young Voices received donations of about $2 million last year, according to its most recent nonprofit tax filing with the the IRS. It doesn’t disclose its donors, but they include Stand Together, which was founded by Charles Koch, and the Bradley Foundation, a leading funder of conservative causes.}}</ref>

			== Bourgeois Background ==
			Yeonmi Park has been called the Paris Hilton of North Korea, and lived a life of privilege and luxury among the upper echelon of society in the DPRK before leaving to begin her career as a celebrity defector in the West.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05\|quote=}}</ref>

	== Inconsistencies in story ==		== Inconsistencies in story ==
	Park claims that her best friend's mother was executed at a stadium in Hyesan in 2002, but according to several other similar defectors, public executions in Hyesan only ever took place on the outskirts of the city, and there haven't been any public executions there since 1999. Park initially stated that the woman was executed for watching a James Bond movie, but later changed it to be a DVD from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]]. [[Andrei Lankov]], a [[Imperial core\|Western]] critic of the DPRK who writes from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]] (where praise of the DPRK is illegal), was skeptical of Park's claim that watching a Western movie would result in an execution.<ref name=":0" />		Her stories as a defector are highly inconsistent and contain large amounts of false information.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref> Park claims that her best friend's mother was executed at a stadium in Hyesan in 2002<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Will Sommer\|title=A North Korean defector captivated U.S. media. Some question her story.\|date=2023\|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2023/07/16/yeonmi-park-conservative-defector-stories-questioned/\|archive-url=https://archive.is/bm8ni}}</ref>, but according to several other similar defectors, public executions in Hyesan only ever took place on the outskirts of the city, and there haven't been any public executions there since 1999. Park initially stated that the woman was executed for watching a James Bond movie, but later changed it to be a DVD from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]]. [[Andrei Lankov]], a [[Imperial core\|Western]] critic of the DPRK who writes from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]] (where praise of the DPRK is illegal), was skeptical of Park's claim that watching a Western movie would result in an execution.<ref name=":0" />

	In January 2013, Park said that she never saw anyone starving in the DPRK. She later claimed that she saw people eating grass and insects to survive. This practice was attested to during the years of the [[Arduous March]], the years during which Park was living in the DPRK,<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=DPRK News Room\|title=Loyal Citizens of Pyongyang (서울의 평양 시민들)\|date=2024-08-16\|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_blPim4r-s\|quote=The defectors that are in their 20s and 30s right now from birth or childhood grew up not knowing what rice or meat is because they were born during the Arduous March. As soon as they were born, they only had corn, grass and tree bark to eat, and instead of going to school they had to trade in the market every day or go up the mountains to gather firewood.}}</ref> but it is unconfirmed whether Park remembers it firsthand or is only repeating stories she heard, as she herself would have been only five years old at the end of the Arduous March.		In January 2013, Park said that she never saw anyone starving in the DPRK. She later claimed that she saw people eating grass and insects to survive. This practice was attested to during the years of the [[Arduous March]], the years during which Park was living in the DPRK,<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=DPRK News Room\|title=Loyal Citizens of Pyongyang (서울의 평양 시민들)\|date=2024-08-16\|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_blPim4r-s\|quote=The defectors that are in their 20s and 30s right now from birth or childhood grew up not knowing what rice or meat is because they were born during the Arduous March. As soon as they were born, they only had corn, grass and tree bark to eat, and instead of going to school they had to trade in the market every day or go up the mountains to gather firewood.}}</ref> but it is unconfirmed whether Park remembers it firsthand or is only repeating stories she heard, as she herself would have been only five years old at the end of the Arduous March.

	In 2014, she said that she defected to [[China]] from the DPRK with her mother and father. She later changed the story and claimed that her father stayed behind.		In 2014, she said that she defected to [[China]] from the DPRK with her mother and father. She later changed the story and claimed that her father stayed behind.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Will Sommer\|title=A North Korean defector captivated U.S. media. Some question her story.\|date=2023\|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2023/07/16/yeonmi-park-conservative-defector-stories-questioned/\|archive-url=https://archive.is/bm8ni}}</ref>

	In an interview with North Korea Today, she said that she could not afford to go to school in the DPRK. In another interview with them, she talked about what she learned in school and said the DPRK had a free education system.<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=JooPark3782 Blog\|title=Yeonmi Park: The Defector Who Fooled the World\|date=2014-12-22\|url=http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328123802/http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-date=2022-03-28\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>		In an interview with North Korea Today, she said that she could not afford to go to school in the DPRK. In another interview with them, she talked about what she learned in school and said the DPRK had a free education system.<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=JooPark3782 Blog\|title=Yeonmi Park: The Defector Who Fooled the World\|date=2014-12-22\|url=http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328123802/http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-date=2022-03-28\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref> Park has claimed in one instance her family was very wealthy, and yet in another instance said her family was very poor.<ref>{{Web citation\|author=Ken Silverstein\|newspaper=Washington Babylon\|title=Young Voices, the PR Shop That Launched the Career of North Korean Celebrity Defector Yeonmi Park, Helps American Journalists and Foreign “Dissidents" Peddle the Gospel of Capitalism\|date=2025-01-10\|url=https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250512184106/https://www.washingtonbabylondc.com/p/young-voices-the-pr-shop-that-launched\|quote=Park’s own accounts have shifted over time; in some, her family was wealthy and in others they was dirt poor, to take but one example.}}</ref>

	== References ==		== References ==

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	{{Infobox person\|name=Park Yeonmi\|native_name=박연미\|birth_date=4 October 1993\|birth_place=[[Hyesan]], [[Ryanggang Province]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea\|North Korea]]\|image=YeonmiPark 2024.jpg\|nationality=Korean\|known=Spreading [[misinformation]] about North Korea}}		{{Infobox person\|name=Park Yeonmi\|native_name=박연미\|birth_date=4 October 1993\|birth_place=[[Hyesan]], [[Ryanggang Province]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea\|North Korea]]\|image=YeonmiPark 2024.jpg\|nationality=Korean\|known=Spreading [[misinformation]] about North Korea}}
	[[File:Yeonmi Park.png\|thumb\|Park Yeonmi in 2013, when she first gained prominence as a defector.]]		[[File:Yeonmi Park.png\|thumb\|Park Yeonmi in 2013, when she first gained prominence as a defector.]]
	'''Park Yeonmi''' (last name '''Park''', though the order ~~of her names~~ is often rendered as '''Yeonmi Park''' in [[Western media]]) is ~~a defector~~ from the [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] (DPRK). She first gained prominence in 2013, ~~eventually moving to~~ the [[United States of America]] ~~where she currently resides~~. Over time, she moved further to the right and is currently backed by a [[United States of America\|U.S.]] [[Libertarianism\|libertarian]] organization called the [[Atlas Foundation]]. Park also claims the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". Her stories as a defector are highly inconsistent and contain large amounts of false information.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>		'''Park Yeonmi''' (last name '''Park''', though the order is often rendered as '''Yeonmi Park''' in [[Western media]]) is known for "defecting" (emigrating without warning) from the [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] (DPRK). She first gained prominence in 2013 for her story, and now resides in the [[United States of America]]. Over time, she moved further to the [[Right-wing politics\|right]] and is currently backed by a [[United States of America\|U.S.]] [[Libertarianism\|libertarian]] organization called the [[Atlas Foundation]]. Park also claims the U.S. has "fallen to [[socialism]]". Her stories as a defector are highly inconsistent and contain large amounts of false information.<ref name=":0">{{Web citation\|author=Mary Ann Jolley\|newspaper=The Diplomat\|title=The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park\|date=2014-12-10\|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801191044/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/\|archive-date=2022-08-01\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>

	== Inconsistencies in ~~stories~~ ==		== Inconsistencies in story ==
	Park claims that her best friend's mother was executed at a stadium in Hyesan in 2002, but according to several other ~~North Korean~~ defectors, public executions in Hyesan only ever took place on the outskirts of the city, and there haven't been any public executions there since 1999. Park initially stated that the woman was executed for watching a James Bond movie, but later ~~claimed~~ it ~~was~~ a DVD from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]]. [[Andrei Lankov]], ~~one~~ of the ~~world's foremost experts~~ of the DPRK ~~and a critic of the regime~~, was ~~extremely sceptical~~ of ~~the notion~~ that watching a Western movie would result in an execution.<ref name=":0" />		Park claims that her best friend's mother was executed at a stadium in Hyesan in 2002, but according to several other similar defectors, public executions in Hyesan only ever took place on the outskirts of the city, and there haven't been any public executions there since 1999. Park initially stated that the woman was executed for watching a James Bond movie, but later changed it to be a DVD from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]]. [[Andrei Lankov]], a [[Imperial core\|Western]] critic of the DPRK who writes from [[Republic of Korea\|South Korea]] (where praise of the DPRK is illegal), was skeptical of Park's claim that watching a Western movie would result in an execution.<ref name=":0" />

	In ~~2014~~, Park said that she ~~defected~~ to [[~~China~~]] from the ~~DPRK with her mother~~ and ~~father~~. ~~She later changed~~ the ~~story and claimed that her father stayed behind~~.		In January 2013, Park said that she never saw anyone starving in the DPRK. She later claimed that she saw people eating grass and insects to survive. This practice was attested to during the years of the [[Arduous March]], the years during which Park was living in the DPRK,<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=DPRK News Room\|title=Loyal Citizens of Pyongyang (서울의 평양 시민들)\|date=2024-08-16\|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_blPim4r-s\|quote=The defectors that are in their 20s and 30s right now from birth or childhood grew up not knowing what rice or meat is because they were born during the Arduous March. As soon as they were born, they only had corn, grass and tree bark to eat, and instead of going to school they had to trade in the market every day or go up the mountains to gather firewood.}}</ref> but it is unconfirmed whether Park remembers it firsthand or is only repeating stories she heard, as she herself would have been only five years old at the end of the Arduous March.

	In ~~January 2013~~, she said that she ~~never saw anyone starving in the DPRK. She later claimed that she saw people eating grass and insects to survive. This practice was attested~~ to ~~during the years of the~~ [[~~Arduous March~~]]~~, the years during which Park was living in~~ the DPRK~~,<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=DPRK News Room\|title=Loyal Citizens of Pyongyang (서울의 평양 시민들)\|date=2024-08-16\|url=https://www~~.~~youtube.com/watch?v=b_blPim4r-s\|quote=The defectors that are in their 20s and 30s right now from birth or childhood grew up not knowing what rice or meat is because they were born during~~ the ~~Arduous March. As soon as they were born, they only had corn, grass~~ and tree bark to eat, and instead of going to school they had to trade in the market every day or go up the mountains to gather firewood.}}</ref> but it is unconfirmed whether Park saw it firsthand or is only repeating stories she heard from that ~~era~~.		In 2014, she said that she defected to [[China]] from the DPRK with her mother and father. She later changed the story and claimed that her father stayed behind.

	In an interview with North Korea Today, she said that she could not afford to go to school in the DPRK. In another interview with them, she talked about what she learned in school and said the DPRK had a free education system.<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=JooPark3782 Blog\|title=Yeonmi Park: The Defector Who Fooled the World\|date=2014-12-22\|url=http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328123802/http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-date=2022-03-28\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>		In an interview with North Korea Today, she said that she could not afford to go to school in the DPRK. In another interview with them, she talked about what she learned in school and said the DPRK had a free education system.<ref>{{Web citation\|newspaper=JooPark3782 Blog\|title=Yeonmi Park: The Defector Who Fooled the World\|date=2014-12-22\|url=http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328123802/http://jooparkblog.blogspot.com/2014/12/yeonmi-park-defector-who-fooled-world.html\|archive-date=2022-03-28\|retrieved=2022-08-05}}</ref>