Racism towards overseas Chinese over coronavirus

Reported by Bella Huang

Edited by Yanni Chow

As the number of confirmed coronavirus cases rises to nine in the UK, the Chinese community in the country find themselves victims of racism with some fearing abuse when they wear a surgical mask.

Gao Zhongshi, a consultant who has worked in London for five years, said when he and his friend were on the subway, a man asked him where he is from and whether his city is close to Wuhan.

“This is extremely offensive and racist,” said Mr. Gao, “so before we left the tube, we pretended to cough in front of the man.” He said they did so “as revenge to scare him”.

Some British-born Chinese have reported similar experiences, even though they haven’t been to China for months or even years.

Jemimah Ho, whose parents are from Hong Kong but who grew up in London, said when she was walking along the South Bank, a white man quickly covered his mouth before shouting “Chinese virus” and swear words at her.

“I have definitely seen more racism after coronavirus,” said Ms. Ho, who is a student at Central Saint Martins. “It also shows how ignorant some British are.”

The UK has the third biggest overseas Chinese community in Europe, after France and Russia, according to the Office of National Statistics, with more than 400,000 ethnic Chinese, around 0.7% of the country’s population.

“Sure, some people are racist, but not all of them,” said Karen Fu, a master’s student at the University of Westminster. “We should not overgeneralise all British.”

Ryan Thorson, a British student in London, agrees, saying, “Racism against Chinese has always been there. The virus is just an excuse for some people to let it out. If the virus happened in a European country or in the United States, people’s attitudes would be very different. Still, it’s unfair to call all British racists.”

As of Feb. 20, Europe has confirmed 47 cases with one death in France.

Chinese communities in other European countries also fear a wave of racism following the outbreak. In the Netherlands, Dutch DJ Lex Gaarthuis apologised for playing a song that blamed Chinese for the coronavirus, calling them “stinky Chinese”. More than 50,000 people signed an online petition in 48 hours against discrimination in the country.

In France, the hashtag #JeNeSuisPasUnVirus (I’m not virus) has been encouraging people to share their stories of facing racism after a local newspaper used the inflammatory headlines "Alerte jaune" (Yellow alert) and "Le péril jaune?" (Yellow peril?).

“Linking someone with the virus simply because the person is a Chinese descendant is illogical,” said Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at an event during the Chinese New Year, emphasising that COVID-19 is an issue about public health instead of an ethnically based one.

Posters saying “Chinese students are not carriers of the virus” are found in the library at the University of Westminster in London. It is believed to be part of the “I’m not virus” campaign.

Chinatown in London, normally packed with tourists and overseas Chinese, has seen a significant decrease in visitors after the outbreak.

An unofficial instagram account of the Technical University of Munich in Germany switched to a private one after a post backfired among Asians before the university’s official account claimed it is an open and culturally diverse campus.

A poster made by Southampton University’s Chinese Students and Scholars Association, calling for respect towards Chinese.