Singer Soyou, who revealed what happened on a plane she recently used and then became embroiled in another controversy, directly refuted it.
On the 20th, Soyou posted a long statement on her personal SNS, saying, "I am sharing my position again regarding the events that occurred on my way back to Korea after a New York schedule."
Earlier, Soyou wrote on her account the previous day, "After finishing my New York schedule, I boarded a flight from Atlanta to Korea via a layover. I was so exhausted that I only asked for a Korean-speaking flight attendant to check the meal time, but the purser judged my attitude, treated me like a problem passenger, and suddenly called security," she said.
Soyou continued, "I even had to say 'If I'm the problem I'll get off,' and afterward I had to endure cold stares and attitudes throughout the flight. At that moment I wondered, 'Could this be racial discrimination?'" She added, "I couldn't eat anything during the more than 15-hour flight, and that experience left deep wounds rooted in racial prejudice," and emphasized, "I hope no one is suspected or humiliated because of their race."
However, when the SNS post became a hot topic, a netizen left a comment claiming to have been on the same flight as Soyou and said she was extremely intoxicated on board and that there was no security, relaying an eyewitness account. This sparked debate, but the netizen deleted the related comments, leaving the authenticity of the eyewitness account unconfirmed.
In response, Soyou said, "Before boarding I drank a small amount of alcohol served with a meal in the lounge, but I completed boarding without any sanctions or problems during the boarding process," and explained, "I always check the meal schedule after boarding to manage my sleep time and condition. After stowing my luggage as usual, I asked a flight attendant to confirm the meal time, but I am not fluent enough in English to communicate perfectly, so it was difficult to conduct the conversation."
She added, "Because it was a flight to Korea, I thought there would be flight attendants who spoke Korean, and during the request that may have led to my English sentence being mistranslated or conveyed incorrectly, the purser and security officer came. At that time a Korean-speaking flight attendant also came to help with the conversation, and it was confirmed that I had no problem and I arrived as scheduled while remaining on the plane."
Soyou emphasized, "It may have been a misunderstanding, but things that made me feel humiliated continued afterward." She said, "While I was moving from my seat to the restroom I met a flight attendant conducting cart service, and the attendant asked me to move to one side of the aisle to allow the cart to pass. I moved as requested and waited for the cart to pass, but the purser ordered me in a high-handed manner to get out of there immediately. Instead, a flight attendant who had been shouted at explained on my behalf that I had been there at the request of that attendant, but there was no apology."
Soyou said, "Also, a staff member traveling with me asked for a Korean menu, but was given another foreign language menu without any explanation, creating a strange situation repeatedly," and added, "Even though the flight attendant who communicated with me in Korean and helped me apologized repeatedly, I still feel bewilderment and regret about all the things that happened after boarding and the cold stares and attitudes that continued throughout the flight."
Soyou also said, "I could not clearly raise an objection at the scene at the time, but I did not write the post seeking compensation or exposure. I mustered the courage to write on SNS in the hope that no one else will experience what I did, and I hope that facts that are not true are not exaggerated," and apologized to any passengers who may have been inconvenienced, saying, "Finally, I apologize to the passengers who were inconvenienced by what happened on the plane because of me."
Full text of Soyou's statement below
I am sharing my position again regarding the events that occurred on my way back to Korea after a New York schedule.
Before boarding I drank a small amount of alcohol served with a meal in the lounge, and I completed boarding without any sanctions or problems during the boarding process.
Also, I always check the meal schedule after boarding to manage my sleep time and condition. As usual, after stowing my luggage I asked a flight attendant to confirm the meal time, but I am not fluent enough in English to communicate perfectly, so it was difficult to continue the conversation.
Because it was a flight to Korea, I thought there would be flight attendants who spoke Korean, and during the request that may have led to my English sentence being mistranslated or conveyed incorrectly, the purser and security officer came. At that time a Korean-speaking flight attendant also came to help with the conversation, and it was confirmed that I had no problem and I arrived as scheduled while remaining on the plane.
It may have been a misunderstanding, but things that made me feel humiliated continued afterward.
While I was moving from my seat to the restroom I met a flight attendant conducting cart service, and the attendant asked me to move to one side of the aisle to allow the cart to pass. I moved as requested and waited for the cart to pass, but the purser ordered me in a high-handed manner to get out of there immediately. Instead, a flight attendant who had been shouted at explained on my behalf that I had been there at that attendant's request, but there was no apology.
Also, a staff member traveling with me asked for a Korean menu, but was given another foreign language menu without any explanation, creating a strange situation repeatedly.
Even though the flight attendant who communicated with me in Korean and helped me apologized repeatedly, I still feel bewilderment and regret about all the things that happened after boarding and the cold stares and attitudes that continued throughout the flight.
I could not clearly raise an objection at the scene at the time, but I did not write the post seeking compensation or exposure. I mustered the courage to write on SNS in the hope that no one else will experience what I did, and I hope that facts that are not true are not exaggerated.
Finally, I apologize to the passengers who were inconvenienced by what happened on the plane because of me.
[Photo] OSEN DB, SNS
[OSEN]