Don’t Think It’s Relevant For BTS To Speak At The UN General Assembly For UNICEF? Read This.

In case you weren’t informed or haven’t done your research well, here’s why BTS being invited to speak at the UN General Assembly for UNICEF actually has relevance.

It was recently announced that BTS had been invited to attend and speak at the 73rd United Nations General Assembly for the launch of UNICEF’s new global campaign called Generation Unlimited. They will be delivering a short speech in front of prominent figures like the Secretary-General of the United Nations António Guterres, UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta H. Fore, South Korean First Lady Kim Jung Sook, among others.

Photo from UNICEF

While ARMYs expressed how happy and proud they were for the group, some people started raising concerns on social media questioning BTS’ relevance to the UN and UNICEF. Some assumed that BTS was invited on a “just because” basis – which can’t be more wrong, especially if you’re aware of BTS’ social involvement, campaigns, and empowering messages towards the youth.

READ: BTS To Deliver A Speech At The UN General Assembly For UNICEF Launch Event

The easiest and most obvious evidence which points out why exactly there’s relevance to BTS being invited in such an event is their campaign in partnership with UNICEF themselves.

Photo from UNICEF

The group had launched their own campaign in partnership with UNICEF called Love Myself in November 2017. Love Myself aims to raise funds for #ENDviolence, UNICEF’s global campaign to protect children and teens from violence and allow them to live happy and healthy lives.

READ: UNICEF Thanks BTS ARMY For Helping Raise $1 Million For #RoarForChange Campaign

BTS had donated part of their Love Yourself albums’ sales revenue to the cause, and have raised an addition of over 1 million dollars as of June 2018. Oh, also BTS and BigHit Entertainment had donated 500 million KRW from their own pockets to the campaign too. Henrietta H. Fore, UNICEF’s Executive Director, had even personally sent out a message to thank BTS and the BTS ARMY for their collective efforts to support the campaign.

But wait – it doesn’t stop at that! For their Love Yourself world tour, a UNICEF booth for the Love Myself campaign is actually stationed at the venues to spread the word about the group’s cause and encourage fans to participate even more.

Photo from Love Myself campaign website

Just like their idols, BTS’ ARMY had also shown active support to several advocacies and humanitarian causes. One example of which was when they helped to raise a whopping $1 million for the #RoarForChange campaign by Star Wars: Force for Change, a collaborative charity initiative by UNICEF, Lucasfilm, and Disney.

READ: BTS’ ARMYs Planted Trees To Celebrate RM’s Birthday

The fandom has been actively providing support and even raising their own fundraising projects on behalf of BTS. Recently, a Philippine fan club dedicated to BTS’ leader RM held a tree-planting activity in honor of his birthday on September 12, while donations to the Love Myself campaign and blood donation drives had been done by Thai ARMYs to commemorate BTS’ anniversary in June.

To celebrate RM’s birthday, our ARMYs planted 200 trees in Sierra Madre mountain as an action to protect our planet and people.

The 200 trees had been raised by ARMYs all over the world in appreciation of Namjoon and our environment. #PlantTodaySaveTomorrow #ARMYnaturewin pic.twitter.com/7B39O5MnC5

— King Namjoon PH (@KingNamjoonPH) September 9, 2018

Additionally, BTS had written and released songs centering on topics like mental health, empowerment, and issues that young people like them had been facing. Take, for example, their social commentary on N.O. about the pressure the youth faces because of society’s expectations: “Students who are pressured to be number one live in between dreams and reality/ Who is the one who made us into studying machines? They classify us to either being number one or dropping out/ They trap us in borders, the adults / There’s no choice but to consent/Even if we think simply/ It’s the survival of the fittest”.

There’s also No More Dream, which talks about how children these days are forced to throw away their dreams for themselves just to please their parents. “Sick of the same day, the repeating days/ Grown-ups and my parents keep instilling confined dreams to me” and “Go on your path/ Even if you live for a day/ Do something/ Put away your weakness” are just some of the notable takeaways from the song.

During the partnership agreement ceremony with the Japan Committee for UNICEF held on April 15 for the launch of the Love Myself campaign in Japan, RM actually talked about how the campaign that they launched fit perfectly with the message that they have been trying to get across with their songs.

“Ever since our debut, we have always been thinking about the values our generation has been struggling with. Through our album Love Yourself: Her released last year, we tried to deliver the message about how we should find the beginning of true love within ourselves. And we came to believe that true love can only begin when you love yourself. So we started the Love Myself campaign, with the intention of loving ourselves and making the world a better place for all with that love,” he said.

Photo from UNICEF

If that’s still not good enough for you, here’s a message from the UNICEF and BTS’ Love Myself campaign site too: “BTS has always been conscious of caring for the world. Ever since their debut in 2013, they have been focused on providing messages of comfort for young people. They never hesitate to express social messages in songs as well as music videos. The member artists of BTS strive, in their own ways, to make the world a better place to live”.

So now, if you still think that BTS does not deserve their chance to speak during the United Nations General Assembly – then you’re definitely a tough cookie.

Have you supported BTS’ Love Myself campaign with UNICEF? Let us know by leaving a comment below, giving us a holler on Facebook, or tweeting us at @hellokpop!