With fears about coronavirus spreading faster than the virus itself, Philadelphia anchor and reporter Nydia Han is calling out the racism behind fears that Asians are automatically carriers.
“My dad does not have coronavirus,” writes the WPVI anchor in a Philadelphia Inquirer opinion piece. “Neither do I. So please don’t treat us like we do.”
Han has spoken at TEDx is also the creator of a documentary series about race, discrimination, and bias in America called #ThisisAmerica.
“History has shown that racism bubbles up from the waters of these kinds of health crises and eventually comes to a boil and burns us all,” writes Han. “This is not just about Asians. It’s about how we as humans default to hate and prejudice when we’re afraid and uncertain. It’s about how our knee-jerk response to seek blame and to scapegoat is detrimental to our entire society.”
The Coronavirus or COVID-19 was first identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019.
“Those of you who follow me on social media might remember my viral video response to a woman who yelled, ‘This is America’ at me on a Philadelphia street,’ writes Han. “Apparently accomplishment is no match against ignorance.”
Asian Americans are still struggling for acceptance and belonging in our country. We still struggle to be seen ‘as American’ as everyone else. And misperceptions about coronavirus are causing more people to tell us to ‘Go back to your country.’ But, this is America. This is my country.