KPop superstars BTS are well-known for being a generally wholesome force with an immense global fandom like few in teen pop history. On Saturday, the group made a rare political statement in which they announced a million-dollar donation to Black Lives Matter, mobilizing their 26 million Twitter followers against racism and brutality.
우리는 인종차별에 반대합니다.
우리는 폭력에 반대합니다.
나, 당신, 우리 모두는 존중받을 권리가 있습니다. 함께 하겠습니다.We stand against racial discrimination.
We condemn violence.
You, I and we all have the right to be respected. We will stand together.#BlackLivesMatter— 방탄소년단 (@BTS_twt) June 4, 2020
Fans, known as the BTS Army, quickly organized online around the goal of matching BTS’ donation. A hashtag was created (#MatchAMillion) and a BTS fansite called Once In An ARMY set up a fundraiser to funnel donations directly to groups like BLM and the NAACP. It was an incredible amount of coordination for a famously diverse online fandom, but what was really wild was what came next.
Since @BTS_twt have donated one million dollars to #BlackLivesMatter, you all have begun the #MatchaMillion project. Many of you have been asking for updates, and we can share the current total from the #BTSARMY carrd: https://t.co/Ry3Vy1rQEb pic.twitter.com/FJpYEkMggc
— One in an ARMY⁷ is back ? (@OneInAnARMY) June 7, 2020
According to Buzzfeed, it took the BTS Army about five hours to reach $190,000 in donations. In 24 hours, they’d raised $800,000. Just a little after 25 hours, they officially ticked over the million-dollar mark. One In An Army posted a message thanking the fandom and committing to longterm support of Black Lives Matter.
This is becoming something of a pattern for the BTS Army, who’ve made huge donations sort of a ritual of stanning. Over the last few years, they’ve launched over 600 charity projects all over the world, utilizing an incredibly detailed and transparent set of guidelines for what types of organizations they’ll fund.
