BTS deliver remarks on Asian hate crime at White House briefing

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Bts Deliver Remarks On Asian Hate Crime At White House Briefing
BTS at the White House, © AP/Press Association Images
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By Mike Bedigan, PA Los Angeles Correspondent

Korean pop sensations BTS said it was “not wrong to be different” as they delivered opening remarks at a White House press briefing.

The music megastars joined press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and each gave short statements in their native Korean, assisted by an interpreter.

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The seven-member boy band — who go by the names J-Hope, Suga, Jungkook, V, Jin, RM and Jimin – earlier met with US President Joe Biden to discuss Asian inclusion and representation and to address hate crime against Asian people, the White House said.

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The music megastars joined press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and each gave short statements in their native Korean, assisted by an interpreter (Andrew Harnik/AP)

Thursday was also the last day of the Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders (AANHPI) heritage month.

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During the press briefing, Jimin said: “We were devastated by the recent surge in hate crimes, 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.”

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The band met Joe Biden to discuss Asian inclusion and representation (Evan Vucci/AP)

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His colleague Suga said: “It is not wrong to be different, I think equality begins when we open up and embrace all of our differences.”

V said: “Everyone has their own history. We hope that today is one step closer to respecting and understanding each and every one as a valuable person.”

The Grammy-winning K-pop group also thanked their legions of fans, known as “the army”, for their continuing support and praised their diversity.

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The Grammy-winning group also thanked their legions of fans (Evan Vucci/AP)

J-Hope said: “We are here once again thanks to our army, our fans worldwide, who have different nationalities and cultures and use different languages.

“We are truly and always grateful.”

Jungkook added: “We are still surprised that music created by South Korean artists reaches so many people around the world, transcending language and cultural barriers.

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“We believe music is always an amazing and wonderful unifier of all things.”

President Biden has previously been outspoken about his commitment to combating a rise in anti-Asian hate crimes, and last year signed the Covid-19 Hate Crimes Act into US law.

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