Starship Entertainment, Wonho, And Minhyuk Apologizes For MONSTA X’s Wonho’s “Me Too” Controversy
MONSTA X‘s Wonho and Minhyuk and Starship Entertainment have released an apology after a video of Wonho resurfaced of him making a joke about the “Me Too” movement.
The video is question is from a past fan sign last March 9. In the video, member Minhyuk is seen putting the microphone to Wonho’s chest. He can also be heard saying, “Nipple-ssi, please say something.” Wonho is then seen raising his hand and saying “Me too.” in English.
The Me Too movement is a movement against sexual harassment and sexual assault, in which victims share their stories and help other survivors find people to relate to and the resources to get them through the incident. The movement allows people to speak up about their encounters with sexual assault and helps them to realize they are not alone.
Once the video started making its rounds, many fans and non-fans were furious and started demanding for an apology from the MONSTA X members. People started filling their fan café, numerous forums, and SNS portals demanding for a formal apology. One user notably said, “I hope not only Wonho, but also Minhyuk who is laughing next to him and the other members in the fan sign are all made aware of what went wrong.”
Starship Entertainment has since released a statement, saying,
Hello, this is Starship Entertainment.
While we had no intentions to cause any harm at MONSTA X’s fan sign event earlier this year, nor during their time of promotions, we would like to give out our most sincerest apologies to everyone and all the fans who felt uncomfortable by the behavior and comments that left room for misunderstanding.
Starship and MONSTA X recognize the issues that were brought up and have since continuously discussed the matter.
Thanks to this incident, we are all deeply reflecting on the careless words and actions. We would like once again apologize to those who are hurt.
In the future, Starship and MONSTA X will make greater efforts to listen to suggestion made by fans and society to overcame the areas in which we lack.
Thank you.
– Starship Entertainment
Wonho and Minhyuk have also posted individual apologies to the fan café. Read their apologies below:
Wonho wrote,
Hello. This is MONSTA X’s Wonho.
I would like to sincerely apologize to the fans and anyone who might have been hurt by my thoughtless words at the March fan sign event.
I did not think about whether what I said could do harm to the Me Too movement and could potentially cause more suffering to the victims, and I disappointed and hurt many people due to my thoughtless actions and words. Looking back on it now, I don’t know how I could say something so ignorant. I am continuing to reflect deeply on this.
It pains me to think that I could have disappointed my fans, who have always energized me and became my source strength, due to my behavior. Through this, I have realized that I could potentially cause harm to people due to my careless actions.
I will look back on this and reflect upon the past so that I can be more careful with my words and actions in the future. I will learn more about the areas in which I like, correct my morals, and show a mature side of me. I promise to become a Wonho who works hard. One again, I am very sorry.
– Wonho
Minhyuk’s apology reads,
Hello, this is MONSTA X’s Minhyuk.
I would like to apologize to the fans and anyone who was hurt by my thoughtless actions and words. Through this incident, I learned that I could possibly cause harm and discomfort to others by being careless with my comments and behavior, and I continue to reflect on my past actions. I should have been careful with all my words and actions, but there were instances in which I did not think before action.
This apology is late but I am still sincerely sorry about my mistake and will make sure that I will not repeat these mistakes in the future. I am so sorry for disappointing the fans. In the future, I will think and work towards a more mature Minhyuk. Once again, I am so sorry.
– Minhyuk
