Calling It the “Chinese Virus” Isn’t Racist & Here’s Why
Those who know me sufficiently well and are familiar with my rather astonishing lack of neuroticism know that I tend to err on the side of anti-panic in the face of adversity. This is much of the reason why I have elected to remained quiet in the midst of the closest thing to apocalypse that I have experienced in my 23 years on Earth. By being particularly privileged enough to have been born in what I believe to be the greatest country in the history of civilization, I have an understandable amount of faith in America’s ability to put together a collective effort to efficiently ensure her citizens are safe.
However, in light of recent events — and considering this is likely to remain relevant for at least the next few months — I think now is an opportune moment to share some thoughts that I have yet to express thus far, even in private.
The unabashed association of the Coronavirus with China, albeit politically incorrect, is an effective means to catalyze dialogue pertaining to who is responsible for the outbreak. The way I see it, the leaders of the country who are hosting yet another virus caused by their own wet markets and knowingly withheld information from its citizens to save face are to blame, particularly when they continue to scapegoat American troops.
As far as some more trivial semantics go, this very fair criticism of a nation of majority East Asian people is by no means racist. Technically, even in the most egregious (yet virtually inexistent, at least not past anecdote) case of someone generally hating Chinese people, that person, while undoubtedly bigoted, is still not definitionally racist. While neither “Chinese” nor “Russian” are races, nobody throws this label at those prejudiced against the latter, and those who do so liberally cheapen real racism.
Speaking of Russia: While China still refuses to close its own borders, it is worth acknowledging that Russia, which borders China, did so proactively back in January and has resultantly garnered fewer than two hundred infections.
There is an important distinction to be made in the bashing of world leaders and those in power as opposed to the average citizen. The president does the former in situations like these often very necessarily; he very seldom does the latter.
This being said, Trump has remained remarkably poised in the face of journalists’ bafflingly disingenuous reporting. He has been even more visibly exasperated by the media’s fixation on mean words people say, and would clearly prefer to spend the time he has been answering wildly unproductive questions lightening the weight of the world currently sitting atop his shoulders.
Regarding attitude toward the government’s role in preserving our well-being: The conflation of a singularly proposed stimulus bill during a time of crisis and regular universal basic income is intellectually dishonest.
Also, the argument for socialized healthcare has been further dismantled by Italy’s atrocious handling of their infected. As the American coastal elites continue to use this to virtue signal and take offense on behalf of others, Twitter continues to be littered with “Italians are the worst white people” verbatim et ad nauseum. Meanwhile, an Italian–American myself, I remain willfully unoffended as I have the capacity to get over myself — unlike the aforementioned who prefer crying into their iPhone 11 Pro Max, apparently.
So, no, I will not be fazed by those who prioritize the dictionary over productivity, and will continue to refer to COVID-19 colloquially as the “Kung Flu” because the people who matter to me recognize little more than the humor intended by it.
Once again, with the risk of appearing flippant towards this sensitive subject matter, I want to make abundantly clear that I am more than willing to do everything in my power to combat any explicit, credible instances of discrimination we may encounter. However, I have always cared and will continue to only care primarily for those capable of making the distinction between what is sincere and what is said in jest.
