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Stray Kids' Hyunjin apologizes to ex-classmates after bullying allegations, fans insist claims are 'false'

Fans have stated that just having fights with someone in school doesn’t make one a ‘bully’

JYP Entertainment has put out a statement regarding Stray Kids’ Hyunjin’s bullying rumors claiming that the K-pop crooner has personally apologized to the classmates that he has unintentionally hurt. After the lengthy apology of JYPE surfaced, Stray Kids fans wondered how much of the bullying allegations were true. If Hyunjin was falsely accused or there was some truth to it.

JYPE published a statement on February 26 that read, “First, we would like to apologize to many of those who felt discomfort due to the negative news involving Stray Kids's Hyunjin. We also ask for your understanding in our belated statement, as it took time to investigate the matter as accurately as possible through various sources.” They added, “After the issue first arose, JYP Entertainment contacted various former classmates, teachers, and other affiliates of the school; after receiving permission, we also personally met up with the initial accuser.”

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Hyunjin personally apologized to classmates

JYPE’s statement mentioned that due to the lack of proof, they had difficulty proving if the allegations were correct. It said, “Once we collected the testimonies of various individuals affiliated with this incident, there was a level of difficulty in confirming the complete truth behind the initial accusation post, due to the fact that individuals gave differing accounts based on their memories.”

The went on to admit the hurt that has been unintentionally caused by Stray Kids’ Hyunjin stating, “It is true that there are individuals who were hurt by Hyunjin's past immature and inappropriate actions, and Hyunjin is also currently deeply regretting his past behavior, and so he personally met up with his former classmates to offer his sincerest apologies.”

JYPE’s statement concluded “We would also like to take this opportunity to apologize to any former classmates whom we were unable to contact, as well as any who felt they were hurt by Hyunjin's words in the past. Hyunjin has resolved to always reflect on his past behaviors and cultivate better character, and JYP Entertainment also plans on doing our best to guide our artists in their moral paths.”

Hyunjin also took to Instagram to upload a handwritten apology to fans, a translation of which was listed on Koreaboo: "First, I would like to apologize to everyone I offended with the way I spoke and behaved when I was still in school. Looking back to when I didn’t know any better than I do now, I’m ashamed of what I did. There is no excuse. I did not know how to be considerate in the way I spoke or behaved and I now realize that I’ve hurt other people’s feelings. I’m terribly sorry about my actions. I know that it’s impossible to forgive the fact that I’ve hurt people in irreversible ways, whether I intended or not. I also know that my apology and it being accepted cannot undo the wrongdoings of my past. Therefore, I will continue to reflect on the mistakes that I’ve made..."

Is the bullying allegation true?

The last part of the statement has made Stray Kids fans wonder as to how much the accusations of bullying were true. Some fans have also said that if Hyunjin hurt his classmates as he didn’t know any better and rectified his mistake, he deserves a chance to grow and learn better. A fan said, “To my understanding the rumors indeed are false but at that time maybe Hyunjin was a little bit inmature and maybe some people feel bad, that’s why he apologize in case some people feel bad about his inmature behavior, I don’t know if I explained myself correctly!”

Fans have also stated that just having fights with someone in school doesn’t make one a ‘bully’. A fan wrote, “Also my thinking was Yes he somehow fought with his classmates but why make it like he is fully a b^IIy like in his school?” Another stated, “I totally agree with you, absolutely everyone have fought with someone and said bad things, and then apologized, that doesn't make you a bully, I'm super mad right now :(“ A fan noted, “it kinda upset me that people made him seems like a bully when all that happened was him acting immature (which is fine. u are lying if u said u didn’t act like an idiot when u were going through puberty). it literally gave me a heart attack when i saw his apology but it’s fine.”

Hyunjin was first accused of bullying in 2018 but there was no follow-up from the accuser. In a series of bullying allegations against various K-pop stars including Seventeen’s Mingyu, Itzy’s Lia, Kim So Hye, and Loona’s Chu, Hyunjin’s name resurfaced. With the apology, JYPE has also requested fans from spreading more false rumors.