Korean-American Businesses in Los Angeles Put Up Signs Banning Former South Korean Soccer Coach
People really need to chill with the hate for Hong Myung-bo because it is getting pretty ridiculous:
Koreans in Los Angeles had hoped to watch Korea play there during the World Cup knockout stage. Instead, they are reacting to the arrival of former coach Hong Myung-bo, whose handling of the national team’s World Cup campaign has made him one of the country’s most criticized sports figures.
Hong arrived in Los Angeles on Thursday, just days after stepping down following Korea’s disappointing World Cup exit. His departure came as lawmakers prepared to question football officials over the Korea Football Association’s (KFA) handling of the national team amid growing calls for accountability over its performance.
The frustration was evident not only in online posts but also on storefronts across Los Angeles’ Korean community.
Photos shared on Threads and Instagram showed restaurants, cafes and grocery stores posting signs barring Hong from entering. One proposal gained traction on the Korean American online forum MissyUSA, where a user suggested local business owners join in.
“In Korea, he probably thinks he can walk away and people will eventually forget,” the user wrote. “There are plenty of Korean-owned businesses here. Let’s all put up ‘Hong Myung-bo, Get Out’ signs.”
You can read more at the link, but fortunately for Hong there are many other establishments he can go to in LA that don’t care who he is. This is all performative theater for social media clicks.
