By Ibne Tamim
Korean band BTS appears at the daily press briefing with Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, in the Brady Press Briefing of the White House in Washington, DC. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)
BTS, the global K-pop sensation, visited the White House on June 2nd, 2022 to discuss anti-Asian hate crimes and prejudice with President Joe Biden. Right now BTS is one of the most successful pop bands in the world, thanks to their catchy songs and dancing videos.
The band has often praised the diversity of their fans, which spans continents, languages, and cultures. BTS has gained this global following in part by selling out stadiums worldwide, connecting with fan groups online, and earning prizes from the MTV Video Music Awards, the American Music Awards, and other influential entertainment organizations.
In addition to talking with the President privately, BTS publicly advocated for more inclusion and positive media representation for embattled minorities during a packed White House news briefing.
President Joe Biden and BTS had already decided to address Asian representation, inclusivity, and anti-Asian discrimination in the United States as the central topic of their meeting in the Oval Office.
As proof of how urgent it’s become to address these concerns, Stop AAPI Hate, an Asian advocacy organization, has logged more than 10,000 reports of hate incidents against Asian American and Pacific Islander people across the United States between March 2020 and December 31, 2021.
Through an interpreter, BTS’ Jimin told reporters, “We were devastated by the recent surge of hate crimes [in the U.S.], including Asian American hate crimes. To put a stop to this and support the cause, we’d like to take this opportunity to voice ourselves once again.”
“It’s not wrong to be different,” added group member Suga. “Equality begins when we open up and embrace all of our differences.”
V added, “We hope today is one step forward towards respecting and understanding each and every one as a valuable person.”
“We feel surprised that music created by South Korean artists reaches so many people around the world, transcending languages and cultural barriers,” Jungkook said. “We believe music is always an amazing and wonderful unifier of all things.”
“Hate only hides. When good people talk about it and say how bad it is, it goes down,” President Biden told the group, adding: “People care a lot about what you say, and what you are doing is good for all people. It’s not just your talent. It’s the message you are communicating. It matters.”
BTS stated, “We cannot put into words the pain of becoming the subject of hatred and violence for such a reason. Our own experiences are inconsequential compared to the events that have occurred over the past few weeks. But these experiences were enough to make us feel powerless and chip away at our self-esteem.”
This isn’t the first time the group BTS (along with their youthful admirers) have gotten involved in politics. In 2020 Reuters even reported that the group’s spontaneous donation of $1 million dollars to Black Lives Matter was independently matched by fan donations in a single day. Recently, to enhance global diplomacy, the United Nations appointed members of BTS to be special envoys for future generations and cultures. Thus BTS giving a statement in their own language at a White House Press conference, and having the world listen to them via global news media, becomes an historic occasion for us all.
[Editors Note: Readers might remember the famous incident in 2020 when BTS fans were credited with organizing via TikTok to prank a Trump rally scheduled in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It was rumored that BTS fans pretended to reserve tickets to the Trump campaign event, where the subsequent low actual turnout was said to have embarrassed the former president.
Citing this incident in June of 2020, CNN producer Julia Hollingsworth wrote: “Prior to the rally, people on social media platforms TikTok and Twitter encouraged people to register to attend Trump’s event – and not attend. One video, with more than 300,000 views, called on fans of South Korean mega group BTS in particular to join the trolling campaign.
Following the rally, Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweeted at Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale, telling him he had been “rocked” by teens on TikTok flooding the Trump campaign with fake ticket reservations. “K-pop allies, we see and appreciate your contributions in the fight for justice too,” she added.]
To read Julia Hollingsworth’s full report on how young K-pop fans increasingly express political opinions see: https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/22/asia/k-pop-fandom-activism-intl-hnk/index.html