The meeting comes against the backdrop of a sharp upswing in hate crimes against the Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander communities in the past year.
South Korean boy band BTS, a fundraising juggernaut for US social justice causes, met with President Joe Biden at the White House to discuss hate crimes targeting Asians.The White House said one goal was to "discuss the importance of diversity and inclusion..."The K-pop stars made brief statements to reporters prior to the meeting, calling for a halt to crimes targeting Asian Americans.
"We were devastated by the recent surge of hate crimes, including Asian American hate crimes," band member Jimin said through a translator. "To put a stop to this and support the cause, we'd like to take this opportunity to voice ourselves once again." The meeting came as Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander month in May drew to a close following a sharp upswing in hate crimes against the community in the past year.
Attacks against people of Asian descent have escalated as some politicians and pundits have encouraged Americans to blame China for COVID-19.