The management company behind BTS has responded to criticism from a Jewish human rights organization over photos of the group’s members wearing Nazi-style hats.
Big Hit Entertainment said they have reached out to the Simon Wiesenthal Center “in order to offer explanations and apologies to anyone who may have been distressed or in any way affected.”
The Simon Wiesenthal Center accused the K-pop group of “mocking the past” after photos from 2005 surfaced showing BTS wearing caps similar to those worn by SS Units at concentration camps.
“It is clear that those designing and promoting this group’s career are too comfortable with denigrating the memory of the past,” read a statement. “The result is that young generations in Korea and around the world are more likely to identify bigotry and intolerance as being ‘cool’ and help erase the lessons of history.”
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Big Hit explained that it “bears all responsibilities for not providing the necessary and careful support to our artist that may have prevented these issues, and we would like to make clear that our artists, especially due to their extensive schedules and the complexities of on-site conditions, are in no way responsible for any of the issues.”
The controversy came only days after BTS singer Jimin was under fire for wearing a sweatshirt that depicted the U.S. atomic bombing of Japan in 1945. A popular Japanese TV show cancelled an appearance by the group due to the outcry.
Big Hit said it has “contacted associations in Japan and Korea representing those affected by the atomic bombings to provide explanations and apologies to anyone who may have been distressed or in any way affected.”