North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un has announced a ban on mullets and skinny jeans over fears that they may lead to a “capitalistic lifestyle.”
“We must be wary of even the slightest sign of the capitalistic lifestyle and fight to get rid of them,” Rodong Sinmun, a North Korean state newspaper, wrote.
In addition to mullets and the popular style of jeans, North Koreans will also be prohibited from wearing ripped jeans, T-shirts with slogans, nose, and ear piercings, and dyed and spiked hair. Jong Un has approved only 15 “proper” haircuts.
The bans are North Korea’s effort to “hold on to our own lifestyle.” In 2018, Jong Un promised to “crush bourgeois reactionary culture.” Since then, the country has banned representations of foreign culture in the country and cracked down on popular K-pop music, which originated in South Korea. K-pop bands were once compared to “slaves” on a North Korean propaganda website.
Jong Un’s strict new orders follow a 2019 survey which revealed that of 200 defectors examined, most of them enjoyed foreign music and films before deciding to leave their country.
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