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With K-pop stans lending support to Black Lives Matter, here are all the times they've effected social change

Despite its reputation for being 'toxic', Stan Twitter and its predecessors have seen K-pop fans band together to change the world on more than one occasion
PUBLISHED JUN 4, 2020
(Getty Images)
(Getty Images)

As 2020 rolls on and gets weirder, it gets more difficult to tell what's real and what is fantasy. News headlines read more and more like satirical pieces found in the annals of The Onion, many of us might find ourselves questioning our sanity and not knowing what to believe anymore. So if you've found yourself doing a double-take when you see stories about the hacker group Anonymous weaponizing K-pop stan Twitter against oppressive forces in support of the Black Lives Matter moment, we're here to tell you that you did not, in fact, read that wrong.

Stan Twitter gets a bad rep mostly owing to several toxic elements that exist within that space, but stans have, for decades, been at the forefront of reform. And despite it often seeming like they band together for some questionable reasons, they have frequently demonstrated they have the power to effect real change in the world. So here's a look back at five moments in time where stans stood together and made the world a slightly better place.

Fans are seen outside while South Korean pop singer Rain appears during a taping of "MTV World Presents: Rain - Live in New York" at the MTV Times Square Studios February 3, 2006, in New York City (Getty Images)

Financial control

Back in 2008, Super Junior was riding high on its success. The 13-member boy band debuted three years prior and had already made a name for themselves internationally. In addition to the core group, Super Junior also had two additional Chinese members who were a part of their Chinese sub-unit, Super Junior-M. And until 2008, the group's fandom ELF had nothing but love for all 15 of the boys until the group's label, SM Entertainment, announced that they would be introducing a rotating system and bringing Chinese member Henry into the core group.

In K-pop, a rotating system generally works by having a massive core group of members who then rotate in and out of various sub-units based on the concept and their individual skills. The most recent iteration of this is with SM's group NCT, which debuted in 2016 and currently boasts a whopping 23 members spread across four sub-units. Historically, Pledis Entertainment's After School, which debuted in 2009, also used a rotating system with the addition of a graduation system that allowed members to "graduate" out of the group and opened the space up for new members to debut in.

But in 2008, the system wasn't as prevalent, and SM, who was known to dabble in experimentation when it came to their groups and lineups, hoped to introduce an early form of it with Super Junior, beginning with the addition of Henry, to be followed by many more. But the ELF was having none of it. They banded together as part of the Super Junior Fan Alliance and held six separate demonstrations against the new system. When these appeared to be having no effect, however, the ELFs decided to hit SM where they were sure it would hurt: their finances.

Leeteuk of Super Junior, a Korean pop music band, shakes hands with fans at a convention, called Kcon, that brings together some of the most popular pop bands from Korea on June 23, 2018 in Newark, New Jersey. This Korean music convention has been held annually in North America since 2012 (Getty Images)

In a 'One Fan One Stock' initiative that drew inspiration from Liverpool fans who did something similar to "save" their club from its owners, fans worked towards buying up stocks in SME as a way to influence decisions pertaining to Super Junior. In a statement released in 2008 the Alliance declared, "As of today, we have 58,206 stocks." At the time, SME released 160 million stocks to the stock market, and ELFs held 0.3% of that total amount.

With their newfound legal right as stockholders, ELFs ensured the members wouldn't be ousted via a rotating system and demonstrated that long before social media's prevalence, K-pop stans had what it took to make a difference.

Charitable donations

Another area K-pop stans are known to have a significant impact on is charity. K-pop idols have a long history when it comes to making charitable donations, with nearly every major idol or South Korean celebrity being involved in some form of giving back. When the coronavirus pandemic ripped through South Korea, celebrities poured millions upon millions of won into helping fight against its spread, in addition to donating supplies to local medical centers, particularly ones in harder-hit regions like Daegu.

K-pop stans took notes, and soon, massive donations were being made by fandoms on behalf of their idols. Most notably, the BTS ARMY, who were receiving refunds on account of the group's concerts being canceled began donating their ticket amounts towards relief efforts. Prior to that, the ARMY donated to Magic Breakfast to show gratitude towards late-night host James Corden for treating the group with respect on his 'The Late Late Show with James Corden'.

Jimin, Jungkook, RM, J-Hope, V, Jin, and SUGA of the K-pop boy band BTS visit the "Today" Show at Rockefeller Plaza on February 21, 2020, in New York City (Getty Images)

In addition to monetary donations and supplies, fandoms also actively come together for local charitable efforts. GOT7's Ahgases have done everything from organizing educational programs and spending time with children to participating in food drives on top of donating to various causes.

Altering the law

Beyond the monetary and material, K-pop fandoms have extended their influence to the legal system as well. The most recent attempts were made by the ARMY, who sought to have the mandatory enlistment laws changed or at the very least relaxed on account of clauses that state artistes or sportspersons who contribute to Korean culture or economy significantly may be exempt from army duties, since evidently, they have already done their duty to the country. While BTS did not receive the exemption, it did open up the conversation on enlistment and whether it continues to hold the same cultural importance it once did.

Apart from enlistment, however, stans have also been at the forefront of movements that called for stricter road rules (on account of life-threatening accidents being a daily occurrence with idols rushing from one schedule to the next), better working conditions for idols (including pushing back against "slave contracts" that lock idols into long contracts by way of debts incurred by the company during the idols' training periods), more accountability from labels and networks (especially with regards to tighter security to protect idols from "sasaeng" or "stalker fans"), as well as better mental health services for idols who are under constant stress on account of their work as well as owing to the abuse they face at the hands of both the industry and over-zealous fans.

A South Korean fan of girl band, I.O.I., (not shown) holds a poster as a K-Pop band perform on stage on June 18, 2016 in Suwon, South Korea. The particular concert was organized by the city government of Suwon, commemorating the 220th anniversary of Suwon-Hwaseong Fortress, a UNESCO heritage site (Getty Images)

While the shift has been gradual, the consistent demands for better working conditions and personal freedom for idols has seen the industry change dramatically in the last few decades.

Holding idols accountable

Despite their goal being to protect their idols, K-pop stans have also often taken a firm stance when an idol has fallen astray.

From idols who have made culturally, socially, and politically ignorant remarks, such as Girls' Generation's Tiffany posting the rising sun flag (which South Koreans view as a representation of Japanese imperialism) as well as an image of the Tokyo Dome one day before South Korea celebrated its 71st anniversary of liberation from Japan's colonial rule or, more recently, F(x)'s Amber Liu or BTS' Suga being called out for their apparent lack of awareness with regard to the ongoing BLM protests, to ones who have engaged in everything from blackface, bullying, and petty crime to DUIs, hit-and-runs, sexual assault, and being anti-fans themselves who have made disparaging statements about fellow idols, K-pop stans have a long history of ensuring idols recognize when they've made a mistake and face the consequences.

While some — including other anti-fans — use this as a way to target artistes they do not want to see succeed, many use this as a way to ensure that celebrities with large platforms and impressionable fans recognize the role their artistry plays in shaping views.

South Korean K-Pop fans of a boy band called Exo try to catch a glimpse of boy bands arriving in the parking lot on June 18, 2016, in Suwon, South Korea (Getty Images)

Social media the new frontier

As K-pop stans continue to organize into highly focused groups that wield considerable power, it has become increasingly apparent to many that they are a force to be reckoned with. So it should come as no surprise that Anonymous chose to team up with them to help take down pro-Blue Lives Matter and white supremacist accounts on social media. K-pop stans are highly tech-savvy youth who, when united, can breeze past seemingly insurmountable obstacles with ease.

And as history indicates, this isn't the first time they have rallied their forces to take down oppressive organizations. Whether it be holding labels accountable, changing the law or pulling up problematic behavior, K-pop stans have made full use of their numbers and social media presence to raise awareness and effect change.

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