With the development and expansion of the COVID-19 epidemic, hostility and attacks against the Asian American community have been increasingly reported, leading physical and spiritual harm to related residents and local business owners in the U.S.
To dispel the spread of misinformation of the virus, condemn the verbal insults and attacks against Asian Americans across the country, the Massachusetts Asian American Commission organized a press conference at the State House steps on March 12. State and local officials, business leaders, and public health professionals attended and made speeches.
Rachael Rollins is the District Attorney of Suffolk County, spoke, stating that she is addressing all individuals in Asian-American communities.
“I’d like my face to be very clear, and when you hear me say this, listen closely,” she said. “If you are bigoted and hateful, if you are targeting people based on xenophobia or racism, you will be held accountable in Suffolk County.”
Rollins encouraged victims of xenophobia attacks to call the district attorney’s office (617-619-4000). For parents, Rollins added, they are civilly responsible for their children’s misbehaviors.
“I don’t think the virus sees color,” said Karen Chen, executive director of the Chinese Progressive Association. Not everyone has the privilege to get adequate protection and healthcare, Chen said, so that “we have to make sure that people around us also have the options that you have.”
Elisa Choi is a physician who took a break from her work to speak at the event. “There’s also a lot of social media circulating that’s calling this virus the ‘China virus,’ she said. “That’s absolutely incorrect and unacceptable.”
Choi said that most people who contacted COVID-19 virus may have a mild illness, but those who have the most vulnerability of having severe symptoms of the virus, are those who are elderly, who have chronic diseases, or who have immune-compromised conditions.
“We all need to bind together as a community, irrespective of our race, ethnicity, nationality, and recognize that this is a trying time for all of us,” Choi said.
Tackey Chan, representative for the Second Norfolk District, said that discrimination and misinformation, driven by social media, is a problem. On the other hand, people should make good use of the internet and keep track of the latest situation, combating fears and dispelling misinformation. “The more we know, the better off we are,” he said.
