Racializing COVID-19 Session 1: Scapegoating During a Global Pandemic (June 11, 2020)

Issues of Coronavirus-fueled racism, discrimination, and harassment in the U.S. and across the globe.

The coronavirus has brought with it an increase in anti-Asian rhetoric and reported hate crimes targeting Asian/Asian American people and businesses in the U.S. Similarly, Africans in parts of China and Muslims in parts of India have been accused of spreading the virus and subjected to discriminatory practices and violence. This seminar will briefly discuss the history of scapegoating minority groups during periods of unrest and how the coronavirus has fueled a resurgence of targeted racism, xenophobia, and Islamophobia. The seminar will also discuss how language, such as repeated use of “the China virus,” perpetuates misinformation about how the virus spreads.