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K-Pop dance group Hush Crew took to TikTok on Sunday showcasing their experience of being harassed for wearing masks in Boston. The video posted by crew member Celena Mai included an overlay text reading- “POV: you get attacked for being Asian while doing [K-Pop] in public.”
She added that the stranger called the group “communists” and “harassed” the dancers for “wearing masks in public.” Mai also said in the video:
“This is America, we’re allowed to do whatever the f**k we want.”
The crew of masked dancers were taking a break from shooting the video and were then approached by the man. Mai added in her video that they were not surprised by him approaching them, as it is a common occurrence. She mentioned that she “didn’t think he was going to do something crazy.”
Stranger calls K-Pop dance group “communists” for wearing masks
When the stranger approached the crew and asked them why they were wearing masks, he began talking about communism, said Mai. She added:
“And that’s when it hit us: we realized he was being racist towards us just because we were like Asian people wearing masks.”
The unnamed man also “swiped” her phone away as she began recording the conversation.
The dancer posted a follow-up video clarifying that the altercation with the man was a “small incident.” She wrote:
“I just wanted to show the craziness of doing [K-Pop] in public. Honestly, this man just needs help.”
Reacting to the unfortunate incident, some followers of K-Pop dance group Hush Crew said in the video’s comment section:
“It was not a small incident and he had no right to approach you and your friends and do all that he did.”
“Do not apologize. You did nothing wrong.”
Another comment read:
“Asian hate is real and being a minority doesn’t make you incapable of racism and hate.”
The Daily Dot spoke to the K-Pop dance group’s founder Aaliyah Flournoy about the incident. She said:
“Out of our many encounters with aggressive persons in Boston, this was one of the very few regarding race. Him calling the dancers "communists", however, can be seen as derogatory, especially when saying it to Asians. And for that, we are obviously offended”
She also added that the “central issue here is that the man is an anti-masker.”
The founder also added that this was an example of what dancers go through when they perform in public, and it was one of the “milder encounters” they had faced.
