colorist behaviors in exo

      For Christ's sake, it feels like everyday I wake up there is something new going wrong in the K-Pop world in terms of what is and is not morally correct. Today, it was me having to wake up to this specific post by Chanyeol on instagram.

  Like damn, can I get a break? Can I go online and not have to worry about the fact that maybe just maybe one of my biases will post something colorist? 

  Now, about the picture. It isn't necessarily bad. Sure, it is very ignorant, offensive, and just downright insensitive, but personally, EXO along with other K-Pop groups have done much worse, therefore, in comparison this is pretty mild. But last time I checked, neither Tao nor Kai was the same color as a coffee bean, and unless they suddenly got a tan and I just don't know of it, I'm pretty sure nothing has changed. 

  This same picture was addressed on Tumblr and I was horrified by the responses from fans who actually got onto other fans for being offended or hurt by the picture. Fans who were offended were told, " it up." "They don't know any better." "That's just how it is in Korea." This isn't the first time fans have insensitively said this to other fans either. Matter of fact, it tends to happen quite a bit, and I've seen it most inside the EXO fandom as that is the one I keep up with the most.

 During EXO's showtime, whenever a select few members - Baekhyun and Chanyeol primarily - clowned on Tao and Kai's darker skin, pointing it out as a flaw, whenever fans - like me - got offended, we were told to hush and to not take it seriously, because after all, it's one joke and they don't mean it negatively. Because they are just "ignorant". However, I do not agree with this whatsoever, because it isn't a joke at all. As a black girl who has been the victim of numerous jokes throughout my lifetime, I can tell you right now it's not so funny. Having to hear your skintone being brought up as a negative is hurtful, and you can't even imagine how hurtful it is to hear the very people you look up to as idols put down darker skin color.

 That's the thing people tend to forget, that these are idols, and as idols they are looked up to and admired which means they have to be sensitive of these things, they have to realize that people of other races and a variety of skin tones are looking at them. 

•  idol - a person or thing that is greatly admired, loved, or revered.

 ​EXO, like most other K-Pop groups, have shown interest in the American music industry and getting to know their American fans. America, as well as most other countries in the world, has a multitude of races, and so for them to mock dark skin color is like mocking their fans who have darker skin color, and truth be told, I can't get with that, because it is highly annoying. I don't even want to hear them saying anything of trying to break into the American industry when they are so insensitive. Don't get me wrong, I love their music very much. But enough is enough some times, and I don't know if I can continue to truly support them if they are going to be like this. Everytime they choose to be this way, I have to switch biases.

 I started out with liking Chanyeol, switched to Baekhyun, then Lay - and was safe with him for a while - but now I am putting most of my attention on Tao and Kai because of the simple fact that I can, more or less, relate to them the most.

 I understand not all of you understand where I am coming from, but at least get this, some things are just not okay, colorism is one of them.