Umji, is an 18 year old girl in a Korean girl group called Gfriend. She was recently called out for being too ugly or unattractive to become a kpop celebrity. There were many articles  and comments on this topic and knowing she will see it one day is heart breaking. J.On March 31st, 2016, an article was posted by jubilantj about Netizens who noticed Umji, who did not act like herself at all. There were over 100,000+ views, 10,000+ shares and 200+ comments on this article.

A comment on this same article explains, “If the idol did the surgery, they judge. If the idol is ugly, they judge too. Wtf is wrong with k-netizens? C’mon even the whole world knows you’re a country with the most plastic surgery  cases why judging a girl with her natural look?” says junsukiyoo. I agree with this comment because not only is it true but it makes total sense. South Korea is one of the largest country who advertise plastic surgery.

In cases where we judge others on how they look, we are monsters. Shouldn’t we accept choices they have made instead of choosing for them? Korean Pop Stars that are successful but unattractive get criticised for getting plastic surgery. But kpop fans don’t understand they get plastic surgery because they want to be accepted. Umji from Gfriend (A south korean girl group) is criticised out for her looks. Anti fans claim Umji is not pretty and does not deserve to be in such group, or in any group at all.

These horrible comments attract Umji’s attention and breaks her into pieces. At the end of a concert, all groups who performed comes out and says hello or receives an award. The announcers make their way to the front where Umji happens to be at. The female artist Irene from Red Velvet is a announcer for the concert. Umji knows Irene is one of many beautiful celebrities and after reading comments of herself being called out makes her feel less confident. Read more about it on https://pannative.blogspot.com/2016/07/umji-trying-to-hide-behind-irenes.html .Recently at League awards ceremony jikkae, she hid her face behind her hair because she wasn’t confident in herself. People claim that she did not perform comfortably like usual, that she was quiet and avoided looking at the crowd as pictures shown below. Umji who not only looked uncomfortable, but seemed like she didn’t want to be on stage anymore.

(photos screenshotted from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MX-Vb5hw9M

Plastic Surgery is a Hit Ad Everywhere in South Korea

People even put up pictures of the possibilities on how she might look like after plastic surgery. The top picture of Umji would be the “possibility” after surgery and the bottom is what she looks like now. Seeing that people actually do this to others makes me sick. Changing their face to fit their standard of beauty is something that can really trigger her to lose confidence. Is accepting others natural looks a bad thing? Umji worked hard to become this successful and anti-fans are breaking her self esteem.

https://twitter.com/pullapart/status/723916477305221120

Comments on http://www.koreaboo.com/news/netizens-surprised-see-umji-look-like-plastic-surgery/ explains “The second picture is seriously the original????” and “I usually defended her because I felt sorry for her but this time I can’t….she really does look ugly in that picture.” The fact that society judge human beings who are unattractive is just hurtful and rude. Korean Pop Stars work hard to get where they’re at. They practice singing, dancing or rapping for years before they can even debut.

It wouldn’t make them too happy if their face was photo-shopped. And if it’s titled “the better version of this person”. It would make me feel upset if I actually looked better. If i considered plastic surgery to fix my features just to be accepted in society i would feel betrayed. Umji should be proud of where she stands and should know she has people supporting her.

Articles that are relevant to celebrities who had plastic surgery are insane. Kpop fans can support Korean Pop Stars who get plastic surgery. Or call them out saying they were better off being natural than fake. Another example is Taeyeon from Girls Generation.

On July 10th 2016, she was accused on having plastic surgery to make her prettier or tried “[…] to improve her visuals.” says koreaboo. Anti-fans of Taeyeon’s failed to prove that she went under the knife. They had no evidence showing that her nose has changed.

But comparing the situation of Taeyeon’s to Umji’s situation is similar but different. Taeyeon is praised for her beautiful features. Although anti-fans try to prove false assumptions of her getting plastic surgery. But for Umji, people are saying that she isn’t pretty enough to be in a group at all and should get plastic surgery.

In my perspective Korean Pop Stars who choose to get plastic surgery is courageous. For all we know they could have enforced them to get plastic surgery. There is a possibility they didn’t meet the standards of Korean beauty. Kpop fans are cruel to choose how someone should look like rather than accepting who they are. Appreciate the energy and time they spend to show a great performance.

Seeing that people start rumors or stories that are inaccurate toward someone is upsetting. These kpop fans are blind to see that they obsess over Korean celebrities who are human beings. They aren’t god, they aren’t superheroes, but they are people. People who have a passion for creating music.

Featured image is the cover of GFRIEND’s album Snowflake