Josh Selig

Opinion | With or without Donald Trump, racist rhetoric on China is making the US unsafe for Asian-Americans

The rise in anti-Asian violence might have started with racist depictions of Covid-19, but it has been sustained by the US government calling China aggressive

Showing tolerance and respect towards China will inspire tolerance and respect towards Asian-Americans, and this will make American cities safer

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People hold signs at a Stop Asian Hate rally in Plano, Texas, on March 27. Photo: Xinhua

Josh Selig

Published: 3:30am, 14 Apr 2021Updated: 5:42am, 14 Apr 2021

My wife and I recently moved to a bigger flat. We are expecting our first child in August and our old one-bedroom place was just not big enough. Our new home overlooks New York Harbour and the Statue of Liberty, a symbol of America that I have loved since I was a child.

My dad was a Jewish refugee who fled Germany during World War II, and my wife is a recent immigrant from Harbin, a lovely but cold city in northern China. I grew up believing the United States welcomed “the world’s huddled masses yearning to be free”, but these days I have my doubts.

Last month, a 65-year-old Filipino woman was walking near Times Square in New York when she was attacked by a stranger who beat and kicked her. A few onlookers, including two security guards, watched the attack and did nothing.

This assault took place just weeks after the killings of eight people – six of them Asian women – in Atlanta, Georgia.

Although anti-Asian bias has been around in the US since our nation was founded, there has been a surge of hate crimes against Asians in the US since 2020. What is at the heart of this violence?

It might have started with former US president Donald Trump’s racist depictions of Covid-19 as the “China virus”, but it has been perpetuated by labelling China as aggressive.