Pub Owner In Korea Issues Apology After Racist Sign

Fear of contracting the Ebola virus has spread around the world, but no country was more afraid than South Korea, it seems.

Owner Jung Jin-chul of JR Pub in Seoul issued an apology after posting a sign in the window of the pub over the weekend that banned Africans from patronizing the establishment out of fears from Ebola.

"We apologize but due to Ebola virus we are not accepting Africans at the moment," the signs on the window at JR Pub in Seoul read. The signs were written on A4 size paper using a marker.

A picture of the sign was posted to Facebook, which led to a frenzied outrage on social media.

Jung has since taken down the signs and has issued an apology.

Photo Credit: The Korea Observer 

Additionally, Jung said the bar is hosting a charity event on Thursday, August 20, from 9 p.m. to 3 a.m. All of the proceeds from the night are being donated to charity and going to those who are in need of help, he said.

"I will give a 50 percent discount on all drinks and food to those coming to the bar on Thursday night," Jung said.

"It all happened because of my ignorance. It's entirely my fault and I'm the one who deserves death," Jung said.

Jung continued on to say that his poor English writing skills caused a misunderstanding in the implications of the sign. 

"My English writing skills are very poor that I asked one of my female staff members to make the signs over the phone at around 8:30 p.m. Saturday," he said.

"I didn't pay much attention about the signs and had no clue about the implications of posting such discriminatory messages until I began to receive a series of complaints from customers and Kakao messages from my friends."

Jung said he intended to write a very different message on the signs.

"What I originally intended to say was 'Those who have recently travelled or come from Ebola affected areas are advised to act with caution' but neither my English nor my worker's English skills were good enough to deliver the message," he said.