BTS Army Has No Time for Racist Comedy Show Sketch

Mi Barrio, a Chilean comedy, is facing backlash over its anti-Asian parody sketch of K-pop boyband and sensation BTS. In the sketch, they mocked the Korean language, threw a COVID-19 jab in, and made fun of the members’ names by combining them with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un—and the internet wasn’t having it.

BTS has one of the biggest followings in the world, lovingly known as BTS ARMY. And they’re not here to play games or let anti-Asian rhetoric pass without consequences or making their voices heard. This is especially true and important during a time when we’ve seen an increase in anti-Asian racism, xenophobia, and hate crimes.

So BTS fans, being the hardcore legion they are, came out in full force to speak out against Mi Barrio. One of the most prominent examples is from the fan account titled @BTS_Chile. They included a full rundown of what happened, why it was problematic, and the steps that could be taken to file a complaint against the show.

Don’t know how to speak Spanish and don’t understand what they’re saying in the sketch? Make sure to scroll down on the thread for a translation of what was said. Also, make sure to read the response from Mi Barrio, which was lackluster at best, that said the following according to the translation by @BTS_Chile:

“Thank you everyone for the good vibes! We’ll continue improving, learning, listening, and we’ll remain firm in our intention: to bring fun to families. We collect all positive comments and also the critics, because that’s what we’re for: contribute a little with humor and fun.”

Fans from all over the world then started using the hashtags #ElRacismoNoEsComedia and its translation #RacismIsNotComedy. They shared their disgust and disappointment with the show, and they made sure that people watching/reading up on what’s happening know that racist jokes are lazy and ignorant ways to make people laugh while perpetuating dangerous stereotypes.

So, shout out to the BTS ARMY for speaking up for the Asian community and for those Latinx people who are Asian and had to watch this garbage. Asian Latinx people are quite often forgotten about, and I can’t even imagine the disgust at watching your own people make fun of who you are and where your ancestors are from for a sketch.

Because it’s not just a sketch. It never is. It’s racism. It’s xenophobia. And it has no place in comedy or in our society as a whole.

(image: Handout/MTV via Getty)

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Lyra Hale

Lyra (She/Her) is a queer Latinx writer who stans badass women in movies, TV shows, and books. She loves crafting, tostones, and speculating all over queer media. And when not writing she's scrolling through TikTok or rebuilding her book collection.

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