TWICE’s Chaeyoung apologises for wearing shirt with a Swastika symbol

22 March, 2023

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TWICE member Chaeyoung has issued an apology after she posted a photo of herself wearing a shirt with a Swastika symbol.

In the now-deleted Instagram post, the K-pop idol was seen posing while wearing a shirt that featured a graphic of Sex Pistols‘ Sid Vicious sporting a T-shirt with a Swastika. Since the 1920s, the symbol has become heavily associated with the German Nazi Party and was used on the the party’s flag, badge and armband.

Chaeyoung has since deleted the post and issued an apology on Instagram in its place. “I sincerely apologise regarding the Instagram post. I didn’t correctly recognise the meaning of the tilted swastika in the t-shirt I wore,” she wrote in her statement, in both English and Korean.

“I deeply apologise for not thoroughly reviewing it, causing concern. I will pay absolute attention in the future to prevent any situation similar from happening again,” the K-pop star continued. “Sincerely apologise again.”

As noted by Variety, the incident comes just days after Chaeyoung was spotted wearing a crop top that featured the QAnon slogan “Where we go one, we go all” during a recent performance on the South Korean chart show Show! Music Core.

South Korean news outlet Korea JoongAng Daily reports that some photos and videos featuring the controversial T-shirt have since been removed, but that neither Chaeyoung nor her agency JYP Entertainment have commented on the issue.

Last year, K-pop boyband EPEX came under fire for allegedly referencing the Nazi anti-Jewish pogrom Kristallnacht in their song ‘Anthem Of Teen Spirit’. The agency later apologised for “not check[ing a metaphor used in the song] more carefully and in detail” in a statement.

In 2021, former GFRIEND member Sowon sparked controversy after she was photographed with a mannequin wearing a Nazi uniform. The singer’s then-label Source Music said in a statement that Sowon had since taken down the post after she “understood the significance of the image”.

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