When Rosé Was Erased: Racism in Global Pop Culture Must End
Published October 4, 2025 04:44 PM
Kang In sig
SEOUL — The recent controversy surrounding BLACKPINK’s Rosé, who was excluded from a group photograph by a major international fashion magazine, has ignited anger across South Korea. To many, it was not a mere editorial oversight but a symbolic act of racial exclusion. At a time when K-Pop stands as a global cultural powerhouse, the erasure of an Asian artist in such a blatant manner has resonated as a collective insult — to Rosé herself, to her fans, and to the Korean people.
Rosé of BLACKPINK. Photo courtesy of YG Entertainment.
A Pattern That Cannot Be Ignored Rosé, the Australian-born member of BLACKPINK of Korean heritage, is one of the most visible global icons of her generation. Yet when her presence was deliberately cropped out of a fashion spread, fans saw it as part of a troubling pattern: the tendency of Western media industries to marginalize or erase Asian faces, even when those very faces are at the center of global cultural phenomena.
This is not an isolated case. K-Pop idols have often faced minimized screen time in Western broadcasts, underrepresentation in magazine features, or subtle sidelining in group promotions. The Rosé incident is therefore a flashpoint in a larger issue: the continuing struggle for Asians to be seen, not merely consumed, in global culture.
Korean Outrage: A National Response The backlash in South Korea has been fierce. Commentators described the incident as “unthinkable in the 21st century,” and social media lit up with anger. For Koreans, this was not only a slight against one of their biggest cultural ambassadors but also a reminder of how Asian identity is still undervalued on the world stage.
As one Seoul university student put it online: “If Rosé — one of the most famous women on Earth — can be erased so casually, what chance do ordinary Koreans have of being respected abroad?”
This fury is rooted in history. Korea has long struggled against being overshadowed by larger neighbors and overlooked in Western narratives. The cultural success of Hallyu, from BTS and BLACKPINK to Parasite and Squid Game, was supposed to put an end to invisibility. But Rosé’s erasure shows that old prejudices remain stubbornly intact.
Not Just K-Pop: Hollywood’s Long History of Erasure What happened to Rosé echoes decades of discrimination in Hollywood. Asian actors have routinely been relegated to side roles, denied leading parts, or subjected to “whitewashing,” where white actors were cast in Asian roles. From Mickey Rooney’s offensive caricature in Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961) to Scarlett Johansson’s casting in Ghost in the Shell (2017), the pattern is depressingly consistent.
Even as Asian-led productions like Crazy Rich Asians (2018) and Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022) break new ground, Asian actors continue to face typecasting, pay inequities, and underrepresentation at awards shows. The lesson is clear: commercial success does not automatically lead to cultural respect.
The Fashion Industry’s Blind Spots Fashion, too, has a fraught history with race. From runway models of color being sidelined in the 1990s to recent controversies over cultural appropriation and exclusion, the industry has struggled to embrace genuine diversity. Rosé’s exclusion fits into this history, raising uncomfortable questions: Why are Asian artists welcomed as global trendsetters, but denied equal visibility in the very images that shape cultural narratives?
BLACKPINK. Photo courtesy of YG Entertainment.
A Global Test of Values This is no longer about one K-Pop star. It is about whether global culture can live up to its rhetoric of inclusion. K-Pop has proven that culture travels freely across borders. Korean music, film, and fashion are now embedded in the global mainstream. To erase an Asian woman from a photograph in this context is not only offensive — it is absurd.
South Korea’s outrage is not merely defensive nationalism. It is a demand for basic dignity in global representation. If cultural exchange is to have meaning, it must be built on equality, not tokenism.
A Call to Action The Rosé incident should serve as a wake-up call to media executives, editors, and cultural gatekeepers. Representation is not decoration; it is recognition. Erasure is not a mistake; it is a message. And the message Koreans heard was clear: that even at the height of global fame, an Asian woman can still be made invisible.
That must change. From Hollywood to Paris runways, from magazine offices to streaming platforms, the responsibility lies with those who shape cultural narratives. No more erasure. No more subtle racism. Not in music, not in fashion, not anywhere.
In essence, Rosé’s exclusion is not a local scandal but a global test. It forces us to ask: Can the industries that profit from Asian creativity also respect Asian identity? Until the answer is yes, every act of erasure will be met with louder voices insisting that racism has no place in the future of global culture.
SayArt.net Kang In sig insig6622@naver.com
SEOUL — The recent controversy surrounding BLACKPINK’s Rosé, who was excluded from a group photograph by a major international fashion magazine, has ignited anger across South Korea. To many, it was not a mere editorial oversight but a symbolic act of racial exclusion. At a time when K-Pop stands as a global cultural powerhouse, the erasure of an Asian artist in such a blatant manner has resonated as a collective insult — to Rosé herself, to her fans, and to the Korean people.
Rosé of BLACKPINK. Photo courtesy of YG Entertainment.
A Pattern That Cannot Be Ignored Rosé, the Australian-born member of BLACKPINK of Korean heritage, is one of the most visible global icons of her generation. Yet when her presence was deliberately cropped out of a fashion spread, fans saw it as part of a troubling pattern: the tendency of Western media industries to marginalize or erase Asian faces, even when those very faces are at the center of global cultural phenomena.
This is not an isolated case. K-Pop idols have often faced minimized screen time in Western broadcasts, underrepresentation in magazine features, or subtle sidelining in group promotions. The Rosé incident is therefore a flashpoint in a larger issue: the continuing struggle for Asians to be seen, not merely consumed, in global culture.
Korean Outrage: A National Response The backlash in South Korea has been fierce. Commentators described the incident as “unthinkable in the 21st century,” and social media lit up with anger. For Koreans, this was not only a slight against one of their biggest cultural ambassadors but also a reminder of how Asian identity is still undervalued on the world stage.
As one Seoul university student put it online: “If Rosé — one of the most famous women on Earth — can be erased so casually, what chance do ordinary Koreans have of being respected abroad?”
This fury is rooted in history. Korea has long struggled against being overshadowed by larger neighbors and overlooked in Western narratives. The cultural success of Hallyu, from BTS and BLACKPINK to Parasite and Squid Game, was supposed to put an end to invisibility. But Rosé’s erasure shows that old prejudices remain stubbornly intact.
Not Just K-Pop: Hollywood’s Long History of Erasure What happened to Rosé echoes decades of discrimination in Hollywood. Asian actors have routinely been relegated to side roles, denied leading parts, or subjected to “whitewashing,” where white actors were cast in Asian roles. From Mickey Rooney’s offensive caricature in Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961) to Scarlett Johansson’s casting in Ghost in the Shell (2017), the pattern is depressingly consistent.
Even as Asian-led productions like Crazy Rich Asians (2018) and Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022) break new ground, Asian actors continue to face typecasting, pay inequities, and underrepresentation at awards shows. The lesson is clear: commercial success does not automatically lead to cultural respect.
The Fashion Industry’s Blind Spots Fashion, too, has a fraught history with race. From runway models of color being sidelined in the 1990s to recent controversies over cultural appropriation and exclusion, the industry has struggled to embrace genuine diversity. Rosé’s exclusion fits into this history, raising uncomfortable questions: Why are Asian artists welcomed as global trendsetters, but denied equal visibility in the very images that shape cultural narratives?
BLACKPINK. Photo courtesy of YG Entertainment.
A Global Test of Values This is no longer about one K-Pop star. It is about whether global culture can live up to its rhetoric of inclusion. K-Pop has proven that culture travels freely across borders. Korean music, film, and fashion are now embedded in the global mainstream. To erase an Asian woman from a photograph in this context is not only offensive — it is absurd.
South Korea’s outrage is not merely defensive nationalism. It is a demand for basic dignity in global representation. If cultural exchange is to have meaning, it must be built on equality, not tokenism.
A Call to Action The Rosé incident should serve as a wake-up call to media executives, editors, and cultural gatekeepers. Representation is not decoration; it is recognition. Erasure is not a mistake; it is a message. And the message Koreans heard was clear: that even at the height of global fame, an Asian woman can still be made invisible.
That must change. From Hollywood to Paris runways, from magazine offices to streaming platforms, the responsibility lies with those who shape cultural narratives. No more erasure. No more subtle racism. Not in music, not in fashion, not anywhere.
In essence, Rosé’s exclusion is not a local scandal but a global test. It forces us to ask: Can the industries that profit from Asian creativity also respect Asian identity? Until the answer is yes, every act of erasure will be met with louder voices insisting that racism has no place in the future of global culture.
