K-pop Fans Take Over #WhiteLivesMatter Hashtag On Twitter

Instead of seeing tweets that would have possibly been called "white supremacist," Twitter users searching for the #WhiteLivesMatter hashtag on Wednesday (June 3) could instead see K-pop memes and Korean music icons on video captured by fans.

In an apparently united effort to drown out white supremacist messaging, K-pop fans used the #WhiteLivesMatter hashtag to instead share links to anti-racist organizations with fan cams of their favorite groups.

The action was reminiscent of the weekend “takeover” of the Dallas Police Department’s “iWatch Dallas” app, which was flooded with similar fan cams and photos. Police said the app was being used to monitor possible illegal activities by protesters but residents claim it was being used to “snitch” on protesters instead.

Other hashtags like #WhiteOutWednesday and #BlueLivesMatter also started trending on Twitter (June 4), but were all noted as a “K-pop” trend on Twitter’s Trending section. An overwhelming majority of the tags are full of memes, fan cams or messages of support for protesters from K-pop fans.

“Whiteout” squares on Instagram have also been commandeered by fans, showing memes and K-pop videos and pictures instead of the intended white squares.

The spamming appears to be attempting to drown out content that counters ongoing protests over the killing of George Floyd and other people of color in police custody.

Fans said that spamming the iWatch Dallas app and the “white supremacist” hashtags on Twitter was a form of protest.

“K-pop fans agree that they do not deserve to be arrested for gathering to fight for justice,” Twitter user and BTS and ONEUS fan “Lovely Doya” told the Rolling Stone.

BTS and Monsta X fan Sarah Jimenez also told the Rolling Stone that it’s a false belief to say that K-pop fans started the trends for views.

“On some occasions, when we don’t like what a tag is trending for, we unite and purposefully spam to overtake it, like was the case for this tag,” Jimenez said.

K-pop fans are hoping to drown out racist or offensive posts by flooding the tags with videos and memes.

On Tuesday, the #BlackLivesMatter tag was also flooded as “black tiles” on Instagram created a social media “blackout” in support of the protests. It was subsequently criticized for blocking out important information about the protests.