As China Battles COVID-19, Racism Against Africans Sparks an Uproar

As China Battles COVID-19, Racism Against Africans Sparks an Uproar
Chinese President Xi Jinping during the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (Photo by Lintao Zhang for Getty Images via AP).

Editor’s Note: Every Wednesday, WPR Newsletter and Engagement Editor Benjamin Wilhelm curates the week’s top news and expert analysis on China.

Governments across Africa lodged protests against Beijing this week after disturbing reports emerged from China, where Africans have been subjected to a xenophobic, racist campaign of harassment and mistreatment that is ostensibly aimed at containing the spread of the coronavirus.

Some African residents in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou said they have been evicted from their apartments and barred from hotels and restaurants. Others reported being forced to self-quarantine and submit to coronavirus tests regardless of symptoms or travel history. Photos and videos surfaced on social media in recent days of Africans being led through the city by police in riot gear.

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