Fan faces backlash for her rude behaviour at a Ateez fansign and racist behaviour afterwards

[juhli.livejournal.com]

A few days ago, ATEEZ held a fan meeting event, which was limited to 30 spots. The intimate meeting should have been filled with heartwarming interactions, but a recent TikTok video has started to go viral on Twitter due to a participant's condescending and racist behavior. The person in question is a Russian TikToker with over 124,000 followers, who recently moved to South Korea and posts K-pop related content like dance covers on TikTok.

According to different Twitter users, the TikToker can allegedly be heard asking some rude questions to some of the ATEEZ members, while mocking their English speaking abilities.

OP: "I praise you for having found your own style and stopped imitating Jimin"
just found this questionable tiktok of a russian atiny who got on a recent ateez fan meeting while scrolling my fyp page and the fact that the girl in the ss just casually said that to wooyoung??like?? pic.twitter.com/ENNYwmVjIU

— ᝰ (@hjshyper) December 19, 2021

and even more things that were said for no damn reason
“is wooyoung a good friend? *implied that san said “yes”* but sometimes you just want to smack him, right? because me too” https://t.co/PQisKHAXgu pic.twitter.com/I4lUNrKVs1

— closed (@babieteez) December 19, 2021

while talking to mingi
1st pic: “WELL HELLO NOW
did you revise your english?”
2nd pic doesn’t need to translation pic.twitter.com/Z4ARtGBusm

— closed (@babieteez) December 19, 2021

written in purple: why are you waving mingi, you should spend your time by learning english and what the word “flower” means” pic.twitter.com/4QT3m7HO96

— closed (@babieteez) December 19, 2021

After the fansign, she went on IG to talk about her experience at the concert and she was making slit-eye gestures mocking Asians.

imitating san’s eye shape and saying “i was really surprised how big his eyes were and that he even has eyes” pic.twitter.com/svxATIiZiP

— closed (@babieteez) December 19, 2021

talks about how she wasn’t too happy that wy was the first one she talked to:
-i asked “why are you the first?”, he went “huh”, i repeated the question
he started to speak in english, i said “you can speak in korean”, and he’s like *in a mocking manner* “oh? i can? wow, so cool” pic.twitter.com/O1aKQ49mi6

— closed (@babieteez) December 19, 2021

The issue blew up first under international Ateez fans but has now reached enter-talk and kpop sites like koreaboo. The fan has since then posted an apology on Twitter/TikTok and defends herself that she was misunderstood.

"It is Sharonova Alina.
First of all, I SINCERELY want to APOLOGIZE for all this situation about fan sign event and about my Insta-live in which you saw one of racist gesture. Though I have been interested in Asia for more than 10 years and have been living in asian already for more than 5 years, I did not know how serious meaning this gesture have. My friends immediately let me know it after they saw first posts. I HAVE NEVER BE A RACIST and never intended to offend someone who is not same nationality with me. I have friends all over the world and the biggest part of them are Asian, whom I regard a lot. I am so sorry for using this gesture thoughtlessly and hurt your feeling! I swear from this moment I will carefully think about each gesture and word.

All of you are mad with me for those comments on video that I added in moments nothing can be heard. (IT WAS NOT THE THINGS I TOLD! NEVER! IT WAS ONLY COMMENTARY OF SITUATION THAT IS GOING ON SCREEN, NOT MY WORDS TO BOYS!)

I do not deny that in video I could use some words in Russian language that have dual meaning. I want to explain for people who do know not know Russian that our language have many words that are frequently used in everyday life, but they can become rude and offensive in some situation.

I SWEAR absolutely all comments were made without any intention of offending any ATEEZ member, KQ Entertainment staff and etc. I did not expect Russian people would take it as an insult towards the boys and spread it into fandom like I had an intention of offending ATEEZ. I am really sorry for misunderstanding and this situation. I am not searching for your excuse, but just want to let everybody know that ATEEZ means a lot in my life and I will never offend/insult/abuse on purpose. They are a huge part of my world and for me saying bad about them is same as abusing myself."

She continues to defend herself on her TikTok 1 2 and her latest video is an apology in Korean.

Source: koreaboo, u/butterflymar, just_2alina, @hjshyper, @babieteez, @AlinaMin98, pann-choa

It is a bit murky about what she actually said in the fansign and what she "just" put as on-screen captions in her TikTok. But her slit-eye gesture at her live afterwards is pretty cut and dry.

What were instances in your fandom, where people have crossed the line during fansigns?

Comments

[lightframes.livejournal.com]

Yeah she's racist. "I have Asian friends" OK! I have heard that excuse before.

She does not like ATEEZ or regard them as human beings. You would never act this way toward someone you actually care about. Mingi hasn't even been back from hiatus that long and now he has to deal with this? No.

I really hate when anyone mocks an idol's ability to speak English because they don't have to do that? It's not required.