Is this the disease of racism?
An illustration image of the Covid-19 coronavirus.
What you need to know:
- A former Italian deputy prime minister attributed the early spread of Covid-19 in his country to asylum seekers of African descent.
- Some cases may have been motivated by a desire for vengeance for compatriots or people of the same racial category.
The Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated racial discrimination against non-citizens and people of colour in many parts of the world. Racism has a huge impact on interpersonal relations, mental health and well-being.
The perpetrators have been mocking victims with statements like “You are infected with the Chinese virus” and “Go back to China!” Then the “ Indian virus” came and peoples start telling Indians to go back to India, beat them and spit on the ground. But when the “UK virus” came, nobody said a thing, not even “Go back to the UK”. Everything was normal.
A former Italian deputy prime minister attributed the early spread of Covid-19 in his country to asylum seekers of African descent. And then-US President Donald Trump openly shouted “Chinese virus” .
Some cases may have been motivated by a desire for vengeance for compatriots or people of the same racial category who have reported racial abuse elsewhere. For instance, there have been reports of growing tensions between the Chinese in Nairobi and Kenyan citizens due to the abuse of Kenyans and some other African nationals in China.
The figures for the past year in the US alone are alarming.
Mass shootings
As reported by NPR, nearly 3,800 cases against Asians were reported to stop AAPI Hate, a coalition that tracks the violence and harassment of Asian-Americans and Pacific Islanders in the US.
Then there were mass shootings in Atlanta last week, killing eight people, including six women of Asian descent. The motive is not yet known though.
As the numbers claimed to more than three million a day in India within a week Canada and many other countries announced a temporary ban on flights from India and Pakistan.
I get calls and emails every day that, when police or by-laws officers in Canada bust a gathering of Whites, they let them off with warning, but they hand Asians or black $750 (Sh75,000) tickets.
No scientist has linked Covid-19 to colour, country, race, religion or faith. Seems like Covid-19 was born with the disease of racism.
Mr Surjit is a veteran journalist and freelance writer based in Brampton, Canada. [email protected]
