“We have endured expletives without reason and were mocked for the way we look.”
BTS is using their platform to condemn discrimination against Asian communities.
On March 29, the South Korean boy band took to social media to share their own experiences with racism and captioned the post with two hashtags #StopAsianHate and #StopAAPIHate.
“We send our deepest condolences to those who have lost their loved ones. We feel grief and anger. We recall moments when we faced discrimination as Asians. We have endured expletives without reason and were mocked for the way we look. We were even asked why Asians spoke in English.”
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“We cannot put into words the pain of becoming the subject of hatred and violence for such a reason,” the “Dynamite” band wrote. “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 our self-esteem.”
The K-pop singers explained that the ongoing violence “cannot be disassociated from our identity as Asians.”
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“But what our voice must convey is clear. We stand against racial discrimination. We condemn violence. You, I and we all have the right to be respected. We will stand together,” they concluded their post.
Many believe the surge in violence towards Asian communities throughout the United States is linked to former President Donald Trump dubbing the coronavirus “the China virus.”
A study from California State University’s Center for the Study of Hate & Extremism revealed that hate crimes against Asians increased 149 percent in 16 of the largest cities across America in 2020.
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