Covid-19, the Chinese diaspora, and the enduring legacy of racism in Peru
Abstract The coronavirus pandemic has exposed a global tendency throughout history to blame immigrants for propagating epidemics. Chinese individuals were thus targeted during past public health crises in Peru, but during the current coronavirus pandemic racist notions painting people of Chinese des...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Casa de Oswaldo Cruz
2022-06-01
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| Series: | História, Ciências, Saúde: Manguinhos |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0104-59702022000200381&lng=en&tlng=en |
| _version_ | 1811249042241355776 |
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| author | José Ragas Patricia Palma |
| author_facet | José Ragas Patricia Palma |
| author_sort | José Ragas |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The coronavirus pandemic has exposed a global tendency throughout history to blame immigrants for propagating epidemics. Chinese individuals were thus targeted during past public health crises in Peru, but during the current coronavirus pandemic racist notions painting people of Chinese descent as “agents of contagion” diminished significantly. Here we examine three major epidemics (yellow fever, the bubonic plague, and covid-19) to demonstrate the current and somewhat surprising shift in negative attitudes toward the Chinese community. Peruvians’ refusal to embrace derogatory terms (the “Chinese virus”) or target individuals of Asian descent constitutes an intriguing case at a moment when xenophobic discourse is rampant in the Western hemisphere. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-12T15:38:22Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-faae4b4b4fa74fa7b97dbdca7af9d6cc |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1678-4758 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-12T15:38:22Z |
| publishDate | 2022-06-01 |
| publisher | Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Casa de Oswaldo Cruz |
| record_format | Article |
| series | História, Ciências, Saúde: Manguinhos |
| spelling | doaj.art-faae4b4b4fa74fa7b97dbdca7af9d6cc2022-12-22T03:26:53ZengFundação Oswaldo Cruz, Casa de Oswaldo CruzHistória, Ciências, Saúde: Manguinhos1678-47582022-06-0129238139810.1590/s0104-59702022000200005Covid-19, the Chinese diaspora, and the enduring legacy of racism in PeruJosé Ragashttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-0074-1111Patricia Palmahttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-1328-9635Abstract The coronavirus pandemic has exposed a global tendency throughout history to blame immigrants for propagating epidemics. Chinese individuals were thus targeted during past public health crises in Peru, but during the current coronavirus pandemic racist notions painting people of Chinese descent as “agents of contagion” diminished significantly. Here we examine three major epidemics (yellow fever, the bubonic plague, and covid-19) to demonstrate the current and somewhat surprising shift in negative attitudes toward the Chinese community. Peruvians’ refusal to embrace derogatory terms (the “Chinese virus”) or target individuals of Asian descent constitutes an intriguing case at a moment when xenophobic discourse is rampant in the Western hemisphere.http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0104-59702022000200381&lng=en&tlng=enracismprejudiceepidemicscoronavirus infectionsPeru |
| spellingShingle | José Ragas Patricia Palma Covid-19, the Chinese diaspora, and the enduring legacy of racism in Peru História, Ciências, Saúde: Manguinhos racism prejudice epidemics coronavirus infections Peru |
| title | Covid-19, the Chinese diaspora, and the enduring legacy of racism in Peru |
| title_full | Covid-19, the Chinese diaspora, and the enduring legacy of racism in Peru |
| title_fullStr | Covid-19, the Chinese diaspora, and the enduring legacy of racism in Peru |
| title_full_unstemmed | Covid-19, the Chinese diaspora, and the enduring legacy of racism in Peru |
| title_short | Covid-19, the Chinese diaspora, and the enduring legacy of racism in Peru |
| title_sort | covid 19 the chinese diaspora and the enduring legacy of racism in peru |
| topic | racism prejudice epidemics coronavirus infections Peru |
| url | http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0104-59702022000200381&lng=en&tlng=en |
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