Donald Trump called on Monday to “protect” Asian Americans, saying the spread of the new coronavirus was “not their fault” after being accused of raising suspicion himself by speaking of “virus Chinese”.
“It is very important to fully protect our Asian-American community in the United States and around the world,” the US president tweeted.
“They are incredible people, and the spread of the virus is NOT their fault in any way. They are working closely with us to get rid of them,” he added.
The Republican billionaire uses the expression “Chinese virus” daily to designate the coronavirus detected for the first time in December in Wuhan, China.
Despite the admonitions from Beijing, which refuses to be stigmatized, he assumed this formula, believing it to be factual, and accused the Chinese authorities of having delayed sharing information on the epidemic.
According to associations representing the community of Asian Americans, this rhetoric has already started to fuel a certain racism against it.
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