Ex-SNSD Member Jessica Sexually Harassed by Mean Online Bullies

A social media post related to Jessica, a former member of girl group Girls' Generation, seems to have sparked a battle between the sexes.

Jessica's friendship with Stephon Marbury subject to sexual harassment

On October 26th, a post titled 'Updates on Jessica' was uploaded to a Facebook page of 230,000 followers. The post shows pictures of Jessica seeming intimate with a black male, with their bodies pressed against each other. The man in question is Stephon Marbury, a former NBA All-Star point guard who currently plays for the Beijing Ducks. Stephon Marbury posted the pictures on his Weibo account last year. The two seem to have become acquainted during a co-appearance in a film.

The reason behind a year-old picture gaining controversy and reappearing on social media is due to the comments written below. As of October 29th morning, almost 1,200 comments were written.

Some male users wrote comments that were sexually offensive, just because Jessica seemed friendly with a black male. Some comments stated racial and sexual slurs, such as "Once you go black, you never go back." "[Do you know] what happens to women who date black men?" "She won't return [to Asian men]." Some comments were even more inappropriate.

In response, some female users wrote "This is why women say 'hannamchung'(a derogatory term referring to Korean men as vermins). Sexual harassment cannot be condoned. If you don't want to be criticized, have a moment of self-reflection." "It's an endless array of Korean male chauvinist pigs."

The comments stirred up anger amongst many and spread to a number of online communities. A web user pointed out that "the comments are not only sexually offensive but also racist." Another stated that "It seems like the real-name system for the Internet is a mere facade. Look at the current Jessica incident. People sexually harass Jessica on Facebook, even as one's name and face are exposed to the public."

By Gothesun and Suwon Han voomvoomk@gmail.com