Is it Wrong to be a Wong?

By Jack Freeman 

 

Since the pandemic began, the rise in anti-Asian hate has grown across the western world. We saw seniors being violently attacked in the streets, business owners having their livelihoods destroyed by thugs overnight, and families shunned from their local communities. 

 

All because of what they looked like. 

 

To the rest of the world, East Asian people and those that were close enough were depicted as the one true villain of the world and the root cause of the biggest global health crisis in centuries. Through subtle messaging like news outlets using imagery of East Asian people with reports of the virus. To more overt methods such as world leaders describing it as the “China virus”. 

 

A war (of sorts) against immigrant and expat Chinese populations and those that looked like them had begun. It didn’t matter whether you were a third-generation immigrant that was born and bred in the country and called it home, or a passing traveller that wanted to explore what else was out there. Neither did it matter if you were Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Malaysian, Thai, Filipino or any person with East and Southeast Asian (ESEA) heritage. 

 

The people made it clear, you were no longer welcome. 

 

On one side it could be argued that the fear and uncertainty of the virus were to blame for these sentiments. This is partly true as it’s only human nature to fight against that which could cause harm. 

 

However, the pandemic didn’t create these sentiments, it merely exasperated feelings which have been seething in the background for centuries.  

 

 

A turbulent past

 

It could be suggested that the root of anti-ESEA hate in Europe has its origins in the 13th century when Batu Khan made their way into Europe as part of the largest land empire in history. European countries were forced to defend themselves and their way of life from the culturally different Mongol empire at this time. It's logical that hatred would grow against the Mongols as a result of the expanding empire invading homelands and pillaging everything in their wake. This was enough to sow the seeds of distrust of ESEA people in European countries.

 

Ironically, European countries would conduct a similar destructive invasion to the Islamic Middle East with multiple crusades to ‘liberate’ the holy land.

 

It wasn’t until the 19th century that anti-ESEA sentiments appeared again and began to evolve over the subsequent decades.

 

A consequence of British colonialism in the far east, through aggressive expansion such as the Opium Wars, led to the formation of derogatory stereotypes and propaganda which depicted Chinese people as depraved people who shouldn't be trusted. This in its base form is commonly referred to as ‘Yellow Peril’. Exemplified by the character of Fu Manchu that embodied the idea of the looming threat of Chinese and ESEA people to the western world. Curiously, this role has only ever been performed by white actors including Boris Karloff, Peter Sellers and Sir Christopher Lee.

 

An adjacent consequence was that maritime trade with Chinese ports grew and with that the rise in Chinese sailors who would stay in British port cities for extended periods of time. Over time those sailors would build their own communities and integrate parts of their culture in Britain, most notably in Liverpool and London. This led to tensions between the local population that believed in the rhetoric of ‘Yellow Peril’ and saw the growth as a threat to British culture.

 

These areas of Chinese culture were beacons for many Chinese sailors and immigrants who sought a better life away from China’s own turmoil. 

 

However, the following decades saw Sinophobia slowly fester in the background and in the minds of the general public. To the British people, these beacons were seen as places of ‘moral depravity’ where activities such as gambling, plots to incite civil unrest and abductions for the purposes of prostitution all occurred in such areas. These negative preconceptions were widespread and even supported by the home office itself with its redistribution of an article titled ‘The Chinese in England: A Growing National Problem’ published in London Magazine in 1911.

 

As we look at modern history, things have changed but these sentiments have endured and evolved with the rise of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) as the almost dictatorial ruling party of the People’s Republic of China.

 

The CCP has been known to be the cause of many questionable actions which have antagonised the global community. The most prominent in recent history was the Hong Kong riots, where the CCP overtly attempted to suppress the rights of the people living in Hong Kong.

 

A mixture of factors like the stereotypes perpetuated by ‘Yellow Peril’, the decades of propaganda and indoctrination from a clash of ideals during the Cold War, and the continued morally reprehensible actions of the CCP have led to growing tensions between the East and West. 

 

The fallout of this has been mostly placed on the people and communities with an ESEA background which was sadly demonstrated during the pandemic.

 

 

The pandemic that broke the camel's back

 

With all the history considered, of which we have only scratched the surface. It’s not difficult to understand that anti-ESEA hate has festered beneath the surface for generations.

 

However, the catalyst that brought all of this to the forefront was the global pandemic that almost brought the globe to its knees. While the exact origins of the virus remain unclear, the anti-ESEA sentiments were made known to every ESEA person and community across the world. 

 

The Covid-19 pandemic began its journey inside of China and thus was an easy connection for an already sinophobic western world to make. 

 

Virus bad, virus from China, the Chinese are bad and to blame. 

 

A simplistic view but this negative association between Chinese people and the virus caused havoc in the years since the start of the pandemic.

 

This association was further reinforced by news outlets which only contributed to the problem. Most of the featured imagery in news reports would often depict ESEA people as a connection to the virus. It may seem harmless but the overrepresentation of ESEA people led to the consolidation of the idea that all ESEA people either have the virus or had caused the virus. This only made things worse and played a part in the rise of anti-ESEA sentiment. 

 

As a result, hate crimes against ESEA people grew in the subsequent years. The measurement of this fallout varies on the source, but one thing was clear, Anti-ESEA hate crimes skyrocketed like nothing else seen before.

 

While verbal abuse has existed for several decades now, it was the sudden rise of physical attacks which was of concern for ESEA communities.

 

During the rise of the pandemic, violent attacks grew. People of all ages were being brutally attacked out on the streets and inside their own homes. Businesses were being vandalised or destroyed. Citizens who were born and grew up in their country were being told the familiar phrase, “go back to your own country.” Once more, it did not matter if you were not from China or had no Chinese heritage. You merely had to look the part and it was enough to seemingly justify the abuse. 

 

In a strange twist of fate, people from countries that are under threat from the CCP and have reason to seek protection in western countries were being ostracised for merely being perceived as Chinese.

 

Things escalated as time went on and it increasingly felt more unsafe than ever before for a person of ESEA heritage. In online conversations in the UK and US, there was an increase of 1662% in anti-ESEA hate speech in 2020 (in comparison to 2019). A worrying rise which concerned many who felt unsafe in public. Concerns that were somewhat justified as anti-ESEA hate crimes rose by 300% in just the first quarter of 2020.  

 

Moreover, there were many notable incidents which instilled sadness and fear in the ESEA communities. 

 

The Atlanta shootings, where 6 out of 8 victims were women of ESEA heritage and was later revealed that Asian massage parlours were specifically targeted for this attack. 

 

The murder of Michelle Go, who was harassed before being fatally pushed in front of a New York subway train.

 

The brutal murder of Christina Yuna Lee, who was followed home and stabbed multiple times in her own apartment. 

 

Closer to home in the UK, there were multiple cases of violent attacks on innocent people. In Southampton, a university lecturer was sent to the hospital after being beaten when they stood up for themselves. Meanwhile in Cambridge, an alumnus from the local university was attacked in broad daylight by a gang of teenagers who’d conducted multiple attacks in the weeks following.

 

These are only the stories that the mainstream media had deemed ‘relevant’ enough to cover. And yet there have been far more racially motivated incidents over the course of the pandemic than what has been reported. From shameless name-calling to violent attacks. This has been a trend across the globe, especially so in western countries where the population is mostly white.

 

 

The lasting effects of the pandemic

 

Over the course of the pandemic, many with an ESEA background felt uneasy in their communities. Under constant fear and distress about whether they’ll be the next victim of a hate crime which will quickly fade into just another number.

 

In these cases of hate crimes against ESEA people, it became increasingly common for the authorities to seem disinterested in responding. Instances such as police putting emergency calls on hold only to eventually hang up we’re all too common. This developed a level of distrust of the police amongst ESEA communities.

 

People felt unsafe and unwelcome in a place they call home, with no one to protect them and increasing pressure to become exiled in their own country.

 

Most concerningly, these harmful anti-ESEA sentiments bled through all the way to the top.

 

Public figures and politicians gaslit a public that was already concerned with the ongoing pandemic. Influential people such as US President at the time, Donald Trump, often would refer to COVID-19 as the ‘China virus’. This would only exacerbate tensions in an increasingly outwardly xenophobic country.

 

In politics, tensions have always been high between the UK government and the CCP. However, it shouldn’t be the reason why many MPs are unsympathetic to ESEA communities.

 

The MP for Luton North, Sarah Owen, cited in an address to parliament discussing the rise in racism against Chinese and east-Asian communities: “A couple of weeks ago, two MPs sat in the same room as me and referred to the Chinese—I will quote this unparliamentary language—as “those evil bastards”, and “oh, you know how they look.” They were rightly discussing the awful human rights abuses being carried out by the Chinese state, but this is an othering of an entire ethnicity, which should have no place in society, let alone this House.”

 

Furthermore, politicians at this time accommodate for voters from an increasingly xenophobic public. This was evident in the Conservative leadership election between Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss. Towards the end of the election campaign, it became clear that Truss was the favourite to succeed. So in a last-ditch attempt to salvage his campaign, Sunak pointed the finger towards China, using terminology which blurred the line between the problem and the Chinese people.

 

For them, it was just another strategy to hold power, but it pushed a harmful ideology which has already hurt the ESEA community.

 

With the anti-ESEA sentiments being reverberated from the bottom to the top of society, it’ll take ESEA communities’ years to recover from the immediate aftermath. It’s worrying to think that this may last for many years and more will suffer during this time. Usually, these feelings will fade away into the background in time, however, the pandemic will forever be a dark mark in history and these sentiments may last throughout generations.

 

 

What happens now?

 

Like many social issues that are deep-rooted within society, it’ll take time for communities to heal and for things to change.

 

Since the pandemic began, movements such as #StopESEAHate and #StopAsianHate have grown. 

 

Anti-racism groups such as End Violence and Racism Against ESEA Communities and Stop Asian Hate UK have been created which increasingly gain more members and supporters by the day. And initiatives like On Your Side now provide support services for people from ESEA communities that have experience racism or any form of hate. 

 

We can also hold each other accountable. We’re in a different time to when ‘Yellow Peril’ was at its height. As such we should challenge our existing preconceptions and question whether they’re affect our judgements.

 

That ESEA community has been hurt over the past couple of years and with the support of those around us, we can build a better future.