U.S. content creator Johnny Somali who kissed 'comfort women' statue in Seoul has YouTube account deleted

Published: 29 Oct. 2024, 12:00 Updated: 29 Oct. 2024, 19:11

Screen capture of Johnny Somali's video uploaded on Oct. 17. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

 
A U.S. content creator who faced backlash for kissing a  statue symbolizing the victims of Japan’s wartime sexual slavery in Korea had his YouTube channel deleted on Monday.
 
“I am appealing the suspension of my channel, which I believe was a mistake,” said Johnny Somali, whose real name is Ramsey Khalid Ismael, on social media platform X the same day.  

 
“My account was recently hacked, leading to unauthorized access and inappropriate content being livestreamed.”
 
Ismael’s YouTube channel was banned after it began streaming pornography, although the exact time of the explicit stream is unknown.   
 
He has faced public scrutiny for streaming his offensive behavior while visiting Korea.  
 

Screen capture of Johnny Somali's video uploaded on Oct. 9. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

 
On Oct. 9, he uploaded a video of himself kissing the Statue of Peace in Itaewon, Yongsan District, central  Seoul, and performing a lewd dance in front of the monument. 
 
The statue represents the tens of thousands of young women forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese military during the 1910-45 Japanese colonial rule over Korea. These wartime sexual slavery victims are euphemistically referred to as "comfort women."
 
Ismael mentioned the statue again in a livestream on Oct. 15, saying, “Let's just head to this [expletive] comfort woman statue.” He further said he would “put some baby oil on it” and suggested performing a sex act. In the same stream, he interviewed people around Kyung Hee University in Dongdaemun District, eastern Seoul, while showing them the flag of Imperial Japan. 
 

Screen capture of Johnny Somali's video uploaded on Saturday. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

 
On Thursday, a man suddenly approached Ismael and his companion named Jino and struck the streamer in the face.
 
The man then grabbed Ismael’s smartphone, threw it far away and left the scene. Ismael and Jino shouted profanities at the assailant as they briefly followed him, but he got away.
 
Later in the broadcast, Ismael appeared with a bandage over his right eye.
 
The identity and motive of the man who punched Ismael remain unknown. The video has since spread across online communities, with netizens responding with comments like, “A hero has appeared,” “Much appreciated,” “Captain Korea” and “He put a cocky YouTuber in his place.”
 
Ismael was later involved in another altercation on Sunday when he visited a Korean acquaintance’s residence while streaming.
 

Mugshot of Yoo Heon-jong and an image of him posing next to Nazi symbols with a rifle [SMITH COUNTY JUDICIAL RECORDS/SCREEN CAPTURE]

The acquaintance, identified as Yoo Heon-jong, was previously sentenced to 97 months in jail in the United States after being charged of firearms violations in 2019. Yoo is known in U.S. online communities as “Texas Asian Nazi.”
 
Yoo’s residence was subsequently surrounded by Korean YouTubers who had gathered to confront Ismael. During an argument with the surrounding YouTubers, a man stepped out and kicked Ismael.  
 
Ismael fled the scene, while Yoo brought out a tactical baton to fight back. Yoo struck the man’s female companion, enraging him to take away the baton and apprehend Yoo. Police subsequently arrived to diffuse the situation.
 
The current whereabouts of Ismael and his companions are unknown.
 
On Oct. 17, Ismael uploaded a video of himself pouring instant noodles on a convenience store table after an employee stopped him from drinking alcohol in the store. Other antics have included playing explicit content on the subway or loudly playing North Korean music on buses.
 
While visiting Japan last year, Ismael was detained by Japanese police after a series of antics, including yelling "Fukushima" at construction workers and playing music with lyrics containing the words "atomic bomb" in public.
 
Ismael had approximately 20,000 YouTube subscribers as of Sunday before his suspension.

BY KIM MIN-YOUNG [kim.minyoung5@joongang.co.kr]