'I became both a May 18 bereaved family member and an Ilbe user at the same time — what a comedy': Singer Harim speaks out

Singer Harim, who drew controversy after criticizing the practice of sending funeral wreaths to make political statements, has spoken out about the backlash, saying he found himself labeled both a May 18 bereaved family member and an Ilbe user at the same time.

Harim wrote on his social media account Wednesday that "a bizarre circus unfolded over a single post of mine that spread through countless articles over two days," adding that "some called me 'Ilbe' and others pointed the finger at me as a 'leftist' — and I am a bereaved family member of May 18."

"I became, in their eyes, both a May 18 bereaved family member and an Ilbe user at the same time," he wrote. "It can only be called a comedy."

He also wrote: "I suddenly find myself wondering why everyone is so eager to claim a not-particularly-famous singer as one of their own. Is it because they want to recruit a recognizable mouthpiece to validate their petty factional battles?" he asked.

He added that he hoped people would not try so hard to pull him into their camp, noting that he is "less famous than the chicken company with the same name."

Harim said "no grand credentials are needed to worry about hatred on the streets or to mourn those who have fallen," adding that he speaks "not because of who I am, but because it is a right that any human being can exercise."

"Where I place my small weight on the scales, amid all those doing the weighing, is my freedom as a citizen and my duty as an artist," he said. "The more this happens, the more firmly I come to believe that words and songs offered from the heart will find their way to those who need them. My resolve to protect what must be protected has nothing left to lose," he added.

Meanwhile, Harim had recently criticized the growing practice of using funeral wreaths in political attacks — including in connection with the Baejae High School controversy — calling it "a vile act done with flowers" and saying "at some point, a bizarre culture emerged of using funeral wreaths as a tool of political assault."

He said the practice carried "the malicious intent of evoking death to ruin the mood of the recipient," and went on to say that he remembered occasions when "funeral wreaths lined one side while supportive flower arrangements lined the other."

On the wreaths placed in front of Baejae High School in particular, he asked: "Who sends funeral wreaths all the way to children's school gates? The same goes for supportive flower arrangements sent to ride the wave of a political issue." He added: "How has the solemn word 'condolence,' once reserved for purely mourning the dead, degraded into a word used today to mock the living?"