Did you know that Dele Alli, a Tottenham player in the English Premier League, made racist comments in February 2020? Dele Ali secretly photographed an Asian man on his social media, and immediately took a hand sanitizer, adding the caption, “This virus must move quiker than that to catch me.” It treated Asian men as viruses. When soccer fans criticized this post, Dele Alli said he regretted what he did. He deleted the video, saying he sincerely apologized to those who were hurt.

Also, recently in Germany, while a Korean student couple was returning home by subway, they heard insulting remarks and sexual harassment remarks such as Happy Corona Day or Corona Party, from five people who appeared to be German citizens. In New York, Asian women were even attacked by hydrochloric acid. In Italy, there was also an incident in which Italian indiscriminately assaulted Chinese. In other words, the spread of COVID-19 has revealed peopleʼs racism toward Asians and widespread selfishness in society.

Korean Minister Kang Kyung-hwa appeared on BBC News and warned racist people. She said “One thing, I want to point out to governments around the world. According to reports, Asians are currently subjected to physical as well as verbal violence in many countries. Governments around the world should be held accountable to prevent this type of accident. Because that does not help at all create the spirit of cooperation that is absolutely necessary to overcome this crisis together.”

Racists must recognize that they are discriminating, and try not to express this hatred. Racists should abandon the idea of treating all Asians as COVID-19 virus carriers, and not treat Asians themselves as viruses. Countries where discrimination occurs should also make efforts. It is not right to sit on the sidelines on crimes committed by disgust. It should inform the people that it is wrong, and take countermeasures. The nation needs to remind its people of the meaning of human rights and emphasize the value of solidarity living together. Also, victims of racism should respond strongly to even minor discrimination. All together, Asians should inform the world of its wrongdoings and try to take legal action against the perpetrators.

With the outbreak of the new corona virus, racial discrimination against certain races and countries is getting worse. COVID-19 is not the only problem we need to solve. Solving racism, an invisible virus, is the challenge of the world.