Karina Deletes Photo of Red Jacket with Number 2... The Over 700,000 Won Item Sells Out

A Single Photo Sparks Unexpected Political Controversy
Karina Fans Issue Statement: "No Arbitrary Interpretation"
People Power Party Steps Up to Support and Defend Karina

Karina, a member of the girl group aespa, has been caught up in an unexpected political controversy ahead of the presidential election. On the 27th, Karina posted a photo taken on a street in Japan on her social media (SNS) along with a rose emoticon. In the photo, Karina was wearing a jumper mixed with red and black colors, with the number 2 written in red. Karina Instagram

Karina, a member of the girl group aespa, has become embroiled in an unexpected political controversy ahead of the presidential election. On the 27th, Karina posted a photo taken on a street in Japan on her social media (SNS), accompanied by a rose emoticon. In the photo, Karina was wearing a jumper with a mix of red and black colors, featuring the number 2 written in red. The post spread across online communities under the title "Karina's Recent Update," leading to speculation that Karina might be supporting a specific party candidate. Some internet users left comments such as "Patriotic conservative Karina," "Number 2 suits Karina," and "I'm a fan from today."

Meanwhile, the brand in question is known to be unrelated to any political affiliations and has often been seen worn by Karina. The jumper Karina wore features numbers along with the brand name printed on it, and its price is in the 700,000 won range. Karina Instagram

The post quickly sparked a political controversy, prompting Karina to hastily delete it. However, some criticized her for being careless during the sensitive period ahead of the presidential election. Certain users commented, "She should be more careful during such a sensitive time," and "I don't think she would post a photo wearing clothes with a red number 2 at this time without any intention." On the other hand, there were also responses such as, "It's exhausting to interpret everything politically," and "The fact that she deleted it right away shows it was truly unintentional."

Baek Ji-won, spokesperson for the People Power Party's Central Election Committee, also praised Karina, a member of aespa. On the 27th, Baek posted a screenshot of the music video for aespa's hit song "Supernova," which features Karina, on Instagram, along with the phrase "SHOUT OUT TO." In hip-hop and among the MZ generation, "shout out to" is used to express respect or support for a particular person or group. In addition, Baek shared the album cover of aespa's regular album "Armageddon," which includes "Supernova," to further express her support.

Furthermore, Lee Sujeong, head of the Suwon-jeong district committee of the People Power Party, stepped forward to defend Karina. On the 28th, Lee posted on SNS, "There's no need to care about hypocrites' witch hunts," and added, "Secondary harm to the victim may be severe, but let's overcome it." She also drew attention by posting a photo of Karina along with the tag, "If you mess with Karina, you're all done for." As the controversy over Karina's photo spread, her fans issued a statement on the 28th, saying, "A 'female celebrity' should not be sacrificed amid political framing and online hate," and "The SNS post of a female celebrity was arbitrarily interpreted as having a specific political meaning, which led to the controversy spreading."

Meanwhile, the brand in question is known to be unrelated to any political affiliations and has often been seen worn by Karina. The jumper Karina wore features numbers along with the brand name printed on it, and its selling price is in the 700,000 won range. Despite the high price, the product worn by Karina became popular online and sold out.