The Washington Post reports:
The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday that attaching Chinese to a description of the coronavirus was wrong after both President Trump and the top House Republican were accused of racism for labeling it.
“It’s absolutely wrong and inappropriate to call this the Chinese coronavirus, I assume you would agree with that,” Rep. Lois Frankel (D-Fla.) said to CDC chief Robert Redfield, who testified in the House on Tuesday morning. Redfield said “yes,” noting the virus is also widespread in South Korea, Iran and Italy.
Some Republicans, including members of Congress, administration officials and Trump himself, have taken to labeling the coronavirus by the country or ethnicity where it was first detected. Democrats have called them out for race-baiting and xenophobia.
The Daily Beast reports:
The novel coronavirus outbreak, which is believed to have originated in a large seafood and live animal market in Wuhan, China, has reportedly led to a surge in racist and xenophobic verbal and physical attacks around the globe.
The World Health Organization named the disease COVID-19 to deter people from associating the virus with a location or group of people, which can ultimately lead to stigmatization.
The president, however, reposted a tweet from conservative commentator Charlie Kirk on Tuesday referring to the disease as the “China Virus” and calling for the U.S.-Mexico border wall to be constructed. Trump added, “Going up fast. We need the Wall more than ever!”
Everything you need to know about the Chinese coronavirus can be found on one, regularly-updated website: https://t.co/nGCCDVqcqe
— Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) March 9, 2020