Daejeon Cafe's "Myeolgong Latte" Faces Backlash Over Incorrect Taegeukgi in Promotion

Incorrect Taegeukgi Trigrams in Poster
Cafe Responds to Public Criticism with Explanation Post

A cafe in Daejeon has launched the "Myeolgong Latte" to mark the 76th anniversary of the Korean War, but it is facing criticism for using an incorrect image of the Taegeukgi.

An incorrect image of the Taegeukgi appears in the promotional material for the 'Myeolgong Latte Campaign' run by a cafe in Daejeon. Screenshot from the Daejeon cafe’s Instagram.

Recently, a well-known cafe with three locations solely in Daejeon announced on its official Instagram account on June 16 that it would sell a limited-edition beverage called "Myeolgong Latte" from June 19 to 25. The cafe stated, "All proceeds from sales will be donated to support war veterans and to patriotic and veterans' organizations." However, the announcement has sparked backlash.

In its promotional post, the cafe asked, "What is the price of the freedom we enjoy?" and wrote, "The freedom we have today is not something that was simply given; it exists because of someone’s sacrifice and dedication."

The cafe further explained the purpose of the event, saying, "We are holding this donation campaign to remember and express gratitude for those noble sacrifices," and shared a promotional poster with the message, "We will not forget. We will remember. Thank you, Republic of Korea."

The poster featured a photo of a battlefield, a white chrysanthemum, and a latte adorned with a Taegeukgi. While the intention was good, public criticism arose after it was revealed that the position of the black trigrams (Geongon Gamri) on the Taegeukgi in the promotional material was incorrect. Specifically, the Gwon Gwae, which should have been at the lower right, appeared in both the upper right and lower left positions.

As this fact became known, online users criticized, saying, "How can you do patriotic marketing without even knowing what the Taegeukgi looks like? Your sincerity is questionable," "If you are commemorating, wouldn’t a Peace Latte be more appropriate than a Myeolgong Latte?" and "The idea of donating is good, but did you really need to mix in a political message?"

One user commented that the name "Myeolgong Latte" itself was inappropriate, pointing out that when Starbucks Korea was recently embroiled in the "Tank Day controversy," far-right figures used the term in remarks such as, "Let’s visit Starbucks and buy Myeolgong Lattes." This raised suspicions that the campaign was not simply a donation drive but mixed with political ideology.

The "Myeolgong Latte" post on the cafe’s SNS account received nearly 400 comments. As the controversy grew, the cafe posted an additional statement on June 18, saying, "I know nothing about politics. The Myeolgong Latte is not about politics," and explained, "We are doing this out of gratitude."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.