Filipino ARMYs hold nationwide (plus HK) walk for BTS

BTS ARMY Hong Kong

Thousands of Filipino ARMYs from more than 50 fanbases held the Purple Walk of Love: You Never Walk Alone all over the Philippines this early Sunday morning, September 8, to champion the world famous BTS, whose member Suga has been the object of cyberbashing and cyberbullying the past month.

Purple is the official color of one of the biggest global fandoms in the world, if not the biggest, and a symbol of BTS’ and ARMY’s bond that has apparently remained unbreakable for the past 11 years since the South Korean’s band’s debut in 2013.

Filipino ARMYs gather at the Stock Exchange Bldg. for the Ayala walk.

The Purple Walk of Love: You Never Walk Alone took place in Baguio, Tuguegarao, Isabela, Tarlac, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, Bataan, & Olongapo-Zambales, Makati City, Lucena City, Albay, Naga City, Cebu City, Iloilo City, General Santos, Cagayan de Oro City, and Iligan.

BTS ARMY Tarlac

BTS ARMY hand banner

BTS ARMY CDO

BTS ARMY Baguio

BTS ARMY GenSan

BTS ARMY Iligan

BTS ARMY Iligan

BTS ARMY Iligan

BTS Iligan purple snacks

BTS ARMY Nueva Ecija

BTS ARMY Quezon Province

On Ayala Avenue, over 3,000 ARMY gathered and walked around Ayala Triangle. In Cebu City, the 8.9-km Cebu-Cordova Link (CCLEX) Bridge is scheduled to be lit in purple today, Sunday.

TheDiarist.ph’s Nikko Dizon and Alya Honasan do the Purple Walk for the love of BTS, especially Suga.

Members of the Filipino ARMY, also known as Filo-ARMY and Pearls in the BTS world fandom, held up hand banners that read “Sa dulo ng walang hanggan” during their walk. It was their message to BTS 7 (RM, Jin, Suga, j-hope, Jimin, V, Jungkook) that their love and support for the band will endure until the end of time, and certainly through the stream of false information and bashing in the internet and social media.

BTS ARMY Ayala

BTS ARMY Ayala

BTS ARMY Ayala

BTS ARMY Ayala

BTS ARMY Ayala

BTS ARMY Ayala

The hounding of BTS member Min Yoongi, aka Suga and Agust D, by the press and social media users over an infraction which he immediately admitted, expressed regret over, and apologized for also prompted the Filipino ARMY fanbases, through their Walk, to campaign against disinformation, fake news, and cyberbullying, and advocate media literacy and mental health.

BTS ARMY Albay

BTS ARMY Naga

BTS ARMY Albay

If Suga, a successful artist celebrated worldwide, can be subjected to these kinds of abuse, what more an ordinary person?

Last August 6, Suga was apprehended by Korean police officers who happened to be passing by as Suga stumbled while parking his electric kickboard or scooter in front of his residence in Seoul. He was tested to have had alcohol intake above the legal limit.

BTS ARMY Iloilo

BTS ARMY Iloilo

Since then, many netizens and media have been relentless with speculations, misleading information about the incident and its consequences, the ferocity of which has been deemed tantamount to cyberbullying.

Part of the proceeds from the Walk event kits were donated by the Filipino ARMY fanbases to Kaibigan Chatline, a support system for young Filipinos in need of mental health and psychosocial support. Kaibigan Chatline is on Facebook, and anyone can avail oneself of free counseling sessions.

BTS ARMY Ayala Avenue

Kaibigan Chatline is a partner of UNICEF Philippines. Since 2018, BTS have been UNICEF ambassadors for its #LoveMyself campaign, which has recently transitioned to the #OnMyMind campaign that advocates for better mental health for every child in the world.

A hybrid version of the Purple Walk of Love: You Never Walk Alone was also made available for ARMYs who were unable to join the event onsite. Participating ARMYs are encouraged to upload on their social media platforms their own online version of the Walk from September 8 onwards.

BTS ARMY Cebu

BTS is one of the most talented and successful bands of the century, producing music with social and personal themes that many fans from the world over can relate to despite the songs being in Korean, the members’ native language.