WRONG ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT BTS, part 1.

SUGA’s hand sign

Once again, I’ve seen so-called ARMYs (BTS fans) spreading the rumor that SUGA / Yoongi is throwing gangster signs in public and that the sign he uses is an extremely rude, sexually offensive and partly misogynistic sign. Whenever Yoongi turns up in public and does his little hand sign, no matter if it is at the Billboard Music Awards or the GRAMMYs, these “ARMYs” are on the spot, claiming that he is such a rude badass who doesn’t give a f*ck about anything. If other ARMYs try to explain what the sign really means, they are attacked by the “macho Yoongi” supporters, who gladly ridicule and bully them. They vehemently believe that they are right, and they even tell you that you’ve been trolled if you interpret the sign in any other way. This makes me very… tired, because these people won’t listen to common sense, so I’m done with them, I don’t say anything anymore, but on the other hand I feel so sorry for Yoongi who has these “ARMYs” spreading such false and unpleasant statements about him. That is why I want to put this down on paper, once and for all, to have something to refer to instead of going into a dialogue with these… trolls.

These trolls are mostly from the American East Coast, as in their part of the world, there is sign called the shocker, which is almost similar to the one that Yoongi uses. It isn’t a gang sign at all, by the way, but a very rude and offensive sign that indicates what a guy wants to do to a girl.

TRIGGER WARNING!! The shocker sign looks like this: the ring finger and the thumb are bent down, while the index and middle fingers and the pinky are up. The middle and index fingers are kept together referring to the act of inserting them into a vagina, while the pinky finger is supposed to go into the anus. And tons of American ARMYs really think this is what Yoongi is signaling! Yes, I know, unbelievable, isn’t it?

 If these people would take a second look, they’ll see that the sign that Yoongi makes isn’t the shocker, because he never keeps the middle and index fingers together, but that is always ignored by the “badass Yoongi ARMYs” whom I personally don’t believe are ARMYs at all. People who think that Yoongi would do such a thing can’t be ARMYs, because if they were, they would know that Yoongi isn’t interested in offending people, especially when it comes to women. He and BTS as a whole are actually known for their respect for women and for avoiding offensive behavior, and yes, I know some ARMYs still like to pretend that Yoongi is a badass, but by now everyone must know that he isn’t. In fact, behind his stoic looks and savage sarcasm, he has a warm, including heart.

When American fans from the East Coast interpret Yoongi’s sign as being rude, it is because they only look at it in their own context and not in a grander perspective. They don’t see the difference in the two signs, but even if the signs were alike, I’m sure it would be incomprehensible to the badass Yoongi supporters, that many hand signs have more than one meaning and that we don’t all just go with what is common in the US.

The V sign, for instance, stands for both peace and victory in the USA whereas in Europe it is mainly a victory sign, invented by the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill when England and its allies defeated Germany in WWII, and I suppose it is the same in South Korea, where Taehyung chose the name because of its victory-meaning. In the same way, the sign where you hold up the index finger and the pinky indicates the devil in the US, but BTS use the sign the same way as in sign language for the deaf, where it means “I love you”.

What I want to say is, that just because a sign has a certain meaning in the US or a part of US, it doesn’t mean that it has the same meaning anywhere else. So if you have a sign that is rude and sexually suggestive in the US, it can easily mean something else in the rest of the world and that it exactly what Yoongi’s sign does, especially as it isn’t the same sign!

The sign that Yoongi uses is called Emeka and it means love, peace and unity, so it is actually the total opposite of the shocker or any gangster sign for that matter. Still people who want to see Yoongi as a misogynistic badass refuse to believe he uses another sign and would rather think that he displays the shocker sign in a wrong way. They are so adamant in this belief that they usually say, that there is no sign called Emeka, because Emeka is a Nigerian name. And yes, it is. It is short for Chukwuemeka which means “God has done so much” or “Great deeds” and that’s the whole point of the matter. It is used for the sign as the sign is a positive thing. You can even read about the Emeka sign in such diverse places as Urban Dictonary, k-pop news sites and baby name sites! Still these so called “ARMYs” refuse to believe in its existence.

Oh well, on thing is that they don’t know better. Another is that they defame Yoongi, spreading injurious slander about him and at the same time ridicule ARMYs who know the true meaning of the sign, but these so-called “ARMYs” don’t give a damn, as they are convinced that Yoongi is a rude badass who wants to “give it” to his hoes. That makes me wonder why they don’t stop and listen to themselves? Because does that sound like Yoongi? Or BTS for that matter? Or is it so incomprehensible to them that Yoongi and BTS have gained such huge international popularity without being macho badasses who need to throw rude hand signs and demean women? If it is, I think they have joined the wrong fanbase!

© BTS ARMA, 2019

P.S. One of my two Ph.D.-degrees is in Cultural Studies, so I know a bit about hand signs!