Donald Trump's Tweet About Asian Americans Is Drawing All Kinds of Backlash in Light of 'Chinese Virus' Rhetoric

Following increased reporting on Asian Americans facing discrimination after President Donald [...]

By Daniel S. Levine

Following increased reporting on Asian Americans facing discrimination after President Donald Trump began to refer to the coronavirus as the "Chinese virus," the president voiced support for Asian Americans in a tweet on Monday. Trump also began his Monday press conference by saying it was "important we totally protect our Asian-American community." Considering Trump previously said he did not think the term was racist, Twitter users were not happy with Trump's latest statement.

"It is very important that we totally protect our Asian American community in the United States, and all around the world. They are amazing people, and the spreading of the Virus is NOT their fault in any way, shape, or form," Trump tweeted moments before Monday's press conference. "They are working closely with us to get rid of it. WE WILL PREVAIL TOGETHER!"

During the press conference itself, Trump did not use the term "Chinese virus" again. He also opened with a statement to the Asian American community, reading his tweet aloud.

"It seems that there could be a little bit of nasty language toward the Asian Americans in our country, and I don't like that at all, Trump later told a reporter who asked why he singled out the Asian American community, reports The Hill.

'It's a human virus'

Trump's statement came after a week of press conferences in which Trump steadfastly referred to the coronavirus as the "Chinese virus." He continued using the term through Sunday's press conference and previously defended it in tweets and in comments to reporters.

"It's not racist at all. No. Not at all," Trump said last week. "It comes from China. That's why. It comes from China. I want to be accurate."

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'Grow up and quit calling it the Chinese Virus'

Throughout the week, Trump's critics spoke out against the phrase, warning that it could lead to racist attacks against Asian Americans. There have been several reported incidents, including the assault of a woman wearing a mask at a New York City subway and a family of four in Texas being stabbed while buying groceries.

"It is dangerous for him to continue calling it the Chinese coronavirus," Rep. Judy Chu, a California Democrat, told CNN on Saturday. "He is creating more xenophobia every single time he does that. And we can see the results in what's happening to Asian Americans across this country." She went on to call the incidents against Asian Americas a "very serious situation, especially in a time of heightened emotion."

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'Who could have given the racists the idea'

Cliff Li, the head of the National Committee of Asian American Republicans, told Mother Jones he wished Trump did not use the phrase "because it could cause some racists in the country to misread it... I disagree with that if [that is] the result."

"We want to condemn any racists attack on Chinese-Americans due to the coronavirus," Li added. "We definitely condemn that."

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'You started this mess'

On Monday, the New York Times published a report in instances of discrimination against Asian Americans during the coronavirus pandemic. Almost two dozen Asian Americans said they feared going grocery shopping, using public transit alone and even letting their children go outside. Some said they were being yelled at in public.

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'My only hope is that his sentiment lasts longer than a few days'

Trump's use of the "Chinese virus" term came against recent World Health Organization guidance against using geographic names to describe new infectious diseases. In 2015, the WHO suggested new diseases be named after a symptom or the pathogen that causes it, like coronavirus.

"Terms that should be avoided in disease names include geographic locations (e.g. Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, Spanish Flu, Rift Valley fever), people's names (e.g. Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, Chagas disease), species of animal or food (e.g. swine flu, bird flu, monkey pox), cultural, population, industry or occupational references (e.g. legionnaires), and terms that incite undue fear (e.g. unknown, fatal, epidemic)," the guidance reads.

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'Suddenly concerned about the safety of Asian Americans'

The coronavirus originated in Wuhan, China, and the number of cases in the U.S. began skyrocketing this month. There are now more than 43,000 cases in the U.S., and over 500 reported deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Photo credit: Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

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