Hate crimes are never okay but especially not in a global pandemic.
In light of the recent COVID-19 pandemic, anti-Asian hate crimes and speech have been on the rise. These range anywhere from discriminatory language, hate comments on social media, social avoidance, and other xenophobic practices. Some say that these have been worsened by the phrase “Chinese virus,” which President Trump used in a recent tweet. However, discrimination and hate have not been limited to Chinese Americans or those of Chinese descent. They have also been recorded against those of Japanese, Vietnamese, Filipino, and other Asian descent, showing that the impact of this kind of behavior is having a much wider impact than the term “Chinese virus” implies.
By now everyone knows that the virus originated in China, but the point of origin could have been anywhere in the world. Global pandemics can originate from anywhere no matter the race, culture, or any other aspect of diversity. Viruses do not see race. They do not see a country of origin. They do not see diversity. Viruses do not discriminate.
Maybe we should be more like viruses. We should not see race. We should not see a country of origin. We should not see diversity (in a negative sense). We should not discriminate against each other.
It is now more than ever that we should be united to fight against the true enemy, COVID-19, instead of each other. We should see each other as one united front to fight against a virus that is weakening our force.