K-Drama “Bo-ra! Deborah” Faces Major Backlash For Insensitive Holocaust Analogy
ENA‘s K-Drama, Bo-ra! Deborah is being criticized for inappropriately mentioning the Holocaust on the show.
On May 14, one international audience member tweeted their concerns about the show mentioning Auschwitz on the show. Auschwitz is a concentration camp used by Nazi Germany during the Holocaust, at which over a million Jews were killed.
i can't believe writers came up with this and everyone in the process approved it. out of all the analogies you could've made…ignorance is scary https://t.co/oLm7BjvolL pic.twitter.com/GAfDte3Nzk
— cha ☾ (@cha_chronicles) May 11, 2023
In the clip, Yoo In Na’s character casually brings up Auschwitz and uses it as an analogy to depict the “importance” of taking care of one’s appearance.
In the Auschwitz concentration camp, where people were dying on top of their excrement, some of them, with half a cup of water, drank half of it and washed their faces with the rest. They even shaved with a piece of glass while using the back of a tray as a mirror. And they survived. Taking care of your appearance and dressing up is a matter of survival. As I am single, I should do something to survive.
— Yoo In Na’s character
International fans expressed horror and anger at the insensitivity with which the show mentions the concentration camp. Many fans expressed disappointment at the show and its writers for the inappropriate analogy.
What a shame I can't support this drama. I really like Yoo In-na, but this ain't it for me.
— Nikki⁷ – Seeing Yoongi in May! Get out of my way! (@Nikkityknack76) May 12, 2023
actually i'm so mad they had to ruin a perfectly fine script like this. this is so disrespectful. also, someone please tell me waxing ads on magazines in korea don't actually have this kind of narrative i am deeply concerned
— cha ☾ (@cha_chronicles) May 11, 2023
omfg
— the hot dam historian (@varsha_venkat_) May 11, 2023
This is wrong on so many levels😬 I’m definitely skipping this k-drama.
— Dee ⁷ ⟭⟬ ⟬⟭ 🥢 (@DeeTkmz) May 12, 2023
Korean netizens also reacted to the clip, with many expressing anger and admonishing the K-Drama’s writer for their ignorance.
- “This is repulsive and creepy. WTF was (the writer) thinking?”
- “Wow…”
- “The criticism is justifiable. They (drama) used (the Holocaust) too casually.”
- “This drama has a $hit load of weird dialogue.”
- “Even if the writer wrote something this insensitive, the drama should have cut it out before filming the scene. Are you telling me no one thought this was problematic?”
- “Is the writer not thinking?”
- “This is a collaboration between an insensitive write, production team, and actor.”
- “Wow, this is really gross.”
- “Wow, this is crazy.”
- “The writer, director, and production team are hopeless. They proved their ignorance. I hope you guys get cursed out.”
- “Why is (the writer) writing without thinking?”
Stay tuned for updates.
