Title: Racial Discrimination Amidst COVID-19 Pandemic

Statement of the Problem

According to Cennimo (2021), coronavirus disease 2019 (most commonly

known as COVID-19) is defined as an illness caused by a novel coronavirus called

severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2; formerly called

nCoV), which was first identified amid an outbreak of respiratory illness cases in

Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China.

Discrimination against race has been happening since before the COVID-19

pandemic started. It only made things worse for the Asian people and Asian descent,

especially of the Chinese community. Chinese people were harassed and were being

called names such as “Kung flu” and “China virus” to recognize some. Many people

are blaming the Chinese people for the global spread of the virus.

Racial discrimination amidst COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t been limited to

Chinese people. Apparently, people of Asian descent also suffer from it. An elderly

Thai immigrant dies after being shoved to the ground. A Filipino-American is slashed

in the face with a box cutter. A Chinese woman is slapped and then set on fire. Eight

people are killed in a shooting rampage across three Asian spas in one night. These

are just examples of recent violent attacks on Asian people since the start of the

COVID-19 pandemic a year ago. From being spat on and verbally harassed to

incidents of physical assault, there have been thousands of reported cases in recent

months (BBC News, 2021).

Structural racial and ethnicity-based discrimination is not the making of

COVID-19. The pandemic, however, has been a magnifier of these phenomena.

Reports from across regions show that due to chronic deprivations and stereotyping

ethnic minorities, indigenous peoples, migrants, and refugees face disproportionately

higher exposure to the pandemic; stigmatization and scapegoating, and the shocks of

extended lockdowns and the global economic recession. Race and ethnicity are also

intertwined with other facets of identity such as gender and disability, generating

dynamic feedback loops that maintain and compound inequalities. With all these in

mind, UN proposes priorities to tackle structural racial and ethnicity-based

discrimination for COVID-19 recovery.

The United  Nations (UN) organized  the UN Frontier Dialogue as an initiative

that seeks to bring to the fore priorities and concrete actions for the UN system to help

create the foundations for more inclusive and equitable societies. Organized under the

umbrella of the UN Sustainable Development Group (UNSDG) Task Team on Leave

No One Behind, Human Rights and the Normative Agenda, this process has been co-

led by UNESCO and the World Health Organization (WHO). UNESCO’s

involvement is anchored in the commitment to upscale the Organization’s

contribution to the fight against racism and discrimination. The outcomes of the

Frontier Dialogue will inform ongoing work to develop a UNESCO roadmap against

racism and discrimination as requested by its Member States. 

In this context, a consultative process was launched in October 2020 aimed to

capitalize on the collective experience and expertise of the UN system towards

identifying challenges and potential responses. On 20 January, some 280 UN officials

and staff and UN human rights experts gathered to conclude this process. At its center

was a background paper produced by a multidisciplinary team led by the François-

Xavier Bagnoud (FXB) Center for Health and Human Rights at Harvard University,
with inputs and orientations provided by an interagency Steering Group composed by

IOM, OHCHR, UNDCO, UNDESA, UNESCO, and WHO. The paper drew on a

series of consultations and peer reviews held from October to December 2020,

involving UN staff, UN human rights experts, and civil society and academia experts

(UNESCO, 2021).

Other actions have also been initiated with regard to the issue of racial

discrimination during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the researchers believed

that those are not yet sufficient enough to fully eliminate the issue.

 The pandemic heightened the cases of racial discrimination at an alarming

level even after several initiatives taken by the governments of the different States,

international organizations, and non-governmental organizations among others.

Violence became rampant and it varies from verbal to physical abuse, assault, and

threats. The reported cases of racial discrimination around the world which are fueled

by the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic integrates that there are indeed a

tremendous need to finally address and take urgent action against racial

discrimination in all forms. The cases reported are clearly violating the basic rights of

humans which are very significant for an individual. Therefore, this study aims to

address racial discrimination of all forms related issues and empower those

individuals who  are marginalized and are suffering from it.

Specifically, this study aims to answer the following research questions:

1. What is the association between the COVID-19 pandemic and racial

discrimination?

2. Why are people being racially discriminated against amidst COVID-19?

3. What are the socio-economic implications of COVID-19 in relation to racial

discrimination?

4. What are the actions that are already undertaken to address the issue against racial

discrimination amidst the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic?

5. How can people contribute to the elimination of racial discrimination-related issues

in their perspective countries?