In a statement posted to their Twitter account on Tuesday, BTS shared their experiences of discrimination and condemned anti-Asian racism amid the rise in violent hate crimes against Asian American and Pacific Islander people.
In the statement — which was posted in both Korean and English — the group sent their "deepest condolences" to those whose loved ones have been killed in recent violent attacks.
#StopAsianHate #StopAAPIHate
"We send our deepest condolences to those who have lost their loved ones," the statement began.
"We feel grief and anger."
Earlier this month, eight people — six of whom were Asian women — were killed by a white gunman in shootings at three separate spas in Atlanta.
A recent report by the organization Stop AAPI Hate showed at least 3,795 reported incidents of hatred toward Asian Americans in the US in the period between March 19, 2020, and Feb. 28, 2021.
"The number of hate incidents reported to our center represent only a fraction of the number of hate incidents that actually occur," the report said. "But it does show how vulnerable Asian Americans are to discrimination, and the types of discrimination they face."
The seven members went on to recall moments they themselves faced discrimination as Asian people, saying they "have endured expletives without reason and were mocked for the way [they] look."
"What is happening right now cannot be dissociated from our identity as Asians," BTS's statement went on.
