Build Back Butter: K-Pop band BTS heading to White House

President Joe Biden will welcome BTS, the South Korean boy band and K-pop group, to the White House next week to “discuss Asian inclusion and representation,” as well as to “address anti-Asian hate crimes and discrimination.”

Biden and BTS “will also discuss the importance of diversity and inclusion and BTS’ platform as youth ambassadors who spread a message of hope and positivity across the world,” the White House said in a statement.

The visit by BTS, scheduled to take place on May 31, will come at the conclusion of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. The group’s appearance alongside Biden will be the latest event orchestrated by the White House to mark month-long celebration.

Biden issued a presidential proclamation on April 29 about AANHPI Heritage Month, and he and Vice President Kamala Harris hosted a White House reception on May 17 that featured U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai. Both Harris and Tai are the first Asian Americans to serve in their respective administration positions.

On May 19, the White House celebrated the passage of legislation to establish a commission to study the potential creation of a National Museum of Asian Pacific American History and Culture. Harris also spoke at the AAPI Victory Power Fund Celebration on May 20 at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.

In its statement on Tuesday, the White House touted Biden’s “commitment to combating the surge of anti-Asian hate crimes” that escalated amid the coronavirus pandemic. Last May, Biden signed into law the COVID-⁠19 Hate Crimes Act, which established a position within the Justice Department focused on anti-Asian hate crimes and allocated resources to enhance state and local reporting.

Biden has previously welcomed young performers to the White House to promote specific causes, most notably those associated with the pandemic. Pop stars Olivia Rodrigo and the Jonas Brothers partnered with the White House last year to encourage vaccination against Covid-19, and a cappella group Pentatonix also performed a song advocating booster shots.