Coronavirus-related xenophobia is spreading – and I’m feeling the effects in the UK

SALVATORE DI NOLFI/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

A number of countries have seen overt instances of racist stereotypes – such instances are something we all need to avoid.

I’ve bought surgical masks. I’ll admit it. I’ve been wearing one a day for a while. Before there were reports of coronavirus cases in the UK, I was already cautious.

Truth is, in the west, we have had little to worry about in terms of recent health crises, but the widespread panic among the Chinese diaspora right now is caused by a dark shadow in Chinese collective memory: that of the 2003 Sars outbreak.

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