Anti-black sentiments spread through China, specifically towards the African community, in wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A McDonald’s restaurant in China has temporarily shut its doors following a racial scandal that was exposed on social media this week. A clip went viral on Twitter this week of a sign at a McDonald’s location in Guangzhou that banned black people from entering the restaurant because of coronavirus. This is part of a recent anti-foreigner sentiment that’s been on the rise ever since Chinese officials warned about the amount of cases of COVID-19 that have arrived from people coming outside of China.
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The sign read, “We’ve been informed that from now on black people are not allowed to enter the restaurant. For the sake of your health consciously notify the local police for medical isolation, please understand the inconvenience caused.”
McDonald’s issued a statement apologizing for the sign, claiming that it’s “not representative of our inclusive values.” With the location shut down and the sign now removed, McDonald’s announced that they’d use the closure to “further educate managers and employees on our values, which includes serving all members of the communities in which we operate.”
Africans that were living in Guangzhou have been turned away from hotels and evicted from their homes due to these anti-foreigner sentiments, even though many of the residents claiming that they haven’t travelled recently nor have had any contact with COVID-19 patients.
