Columbia's statistical report shows that more than half of Chinese in New York under the epidemic have suffered racial discrimination

Source: China Overseas Chinese Network

According to the US "World Journal", the new crown pneumonia epidemic has made the underlying problem of racial discrimination rampant, and 2020 has become a watershed that tears apart the peaceful life of Chinese people in the United States. According to a statistical report released by Columbia University recently, since the outbreak of the epidemic, about 58% of Chinese residents living in New York City have suffered some form of discrimination, one-third have experienced harassment, assault or prejudice, and 71% are worried that hate crimes will affect their and their family's safety; the results of the study show that the dual challenges of the epidemic and discrimination are exacerbating the permanent negative trauma of the economic, social, physical, emotional and mental health of local Chinese.

The New York City Commission on Human Rights received 205 reports of Asian-vendetta between February and December 2020, up from the previous year, and national statistics show that Chinese Americans have experienced the highest number of discrimination incidents in the past two years than Asian-American groups. The researchers note that some stigmatizing terms aimed at China have exacerbated the rapid spread of discriminatory speech and behavior against ethnic Chinese.

In the study by Professor Gao Qin, director of the China Policy Center at Columbia University's School of Social Work, and researcher Liu Xiaofang, discrimination against ethnic Chinese living in New York is more pervasive, harmful, and persistent, especially among ordinary Chinese residents who live in the material life of public transportation (such as the subway), who are more likely to be targeted for racial discrimination because they are exposed to high-risk environments.

Columbia university research shows that between March and December 2020, 58 percent of Chinese New York residents experienced discrimination; one in five had been threatened or harassed, one-third had been treated unfairly at restaurants or stores, and nearly half felt they were not adequately respected or that others had shown fear of themselves. Among the more than 400 respondents, researchers often received feedback such as "I'm afraid of being attacked when I'm away, most of the time I'm just staying home and feeling very depressed," "I'm worried about being punched in the face or being harassed one day," "A lot of people tell me to stay away from them, which makes me uncomfortable."

About one-third of Chinese citizens in 2020 also experienced some sort of harassment, assault or prejudice; 18 percent were harassed with racially related derogatory terms; 14 percent were excluded from some activities or social situations; 12 percent were verbally threatened; and 6 percent were physically intimidated or beaten. Victim May recalled to the researchers that when she and her ten-year-old son came out of the Brooklyn subway station, they encountered two people yelling at them, hearing words such as "I hate", "Asian", "COVID-19", "I was very scared, and my son ran away as fast as possible, usually going out with pepper spray." ”

Acts of hatred exacerbate the psychological trauma of the Chinese community. According to the study, 71 percent of Chinese New Yorkers are concerned about the impact of hate crimes on their safety and that of their families; 66 percent shy away from certain outings out of concern; and 61 percent feel uncomfortable in public or worry that others will view them negatively. This racism-related vigilance, also known as anticipatory stress, is a chronic stress response that forces the person to think back and forth about the experience associated with racism while remaining on the alert to defend against racial stereotypes and discrimination, the researchers said.

"The study found that 92% of Chinese victims would choose negative coping strategies, such as remaining silent, trying to forget, accepting and calming down; but many would also respond positively, trying to call the police, fight back, protest and seek help." The researchers hope that this report can be used to unite all sectors of society to protect the Asian community and achieve racial equality and justice. (Zhang Xin)