Living through the current pandemic of COVID-19 has changed my views as a Chinese Australian. For the first time, if a stranger was to speak to me on the streets of Newcastle, I was worried that they would blame me for COVID-19. I had a roommate suspect m

Living through the current pandemic of COVID-19 has changed my views as a Chinese Australian. For the first time, if a stranger was to speak to me on the streets of Newcastle, I was worried that they would blame me for COVID-19. I had a roommate suspect me of having the COVID-19 even after I reassured him of no overseas travel experience and symptoms. His judgment was purely based on my Chinese appearance. My other friends of Asian appearance backgrounds have also experienced racism, some were refused onto the bus and others were refused to be served at a cafeteria. I remember browsing through many articles and one title caught my eye “ Melbourne health workers of Asian appearance report racist coronavirus attack”. The situation described a mother refusing her child to be examined by a doctor of Asian appearance.

I was frustrated at how people can link and blame the disease to an entire ethnicity. That a mother would not allow a doctor to treat her children purely due to appearance. As a future front line worker, I can’t imagine how I would feel being in the doctor’s position. This experience has taught me how dangerous and insecure one feels when being racial discrimination against.