Coronavirus: French Asians hit back at racism with 'I'm not a virus'

#abroad

French Asians have taken to social media to complain of a backlash against them in response to the Chinese coronavirus outbreak.

Anti-Asian racism has been reported in the UK and elsewhere, and now French Asians have complained of abuse on public transport and social media.

They have been using the hashtag JeNeSuisPasUnVirus (I'm not a virus).

There was an outcry when local newspaper Le Courier Picard used the inflammatory headlines "Alerte jaune" (Yellow alert) and "Le péril jaune?" (Yellow peril?), complete with an image of a Chinese woman wearing a protective mask.