Actor Daniel Dae Kim Shares His Coronavirus Diagnosis and Calls for an End to 'Cowardly' Anti-Asian Racism
American actor Daniel Dae Kim announced on Thursday that he has tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
Kim — who is known for his roles on Hawaii Five-0 and Lost — shared the news in a 10-minute video posted to his Instagram. He had been filming the series New Amsterdam in New York City for the past several weeks before the show halted production because of the threat of the virus. In a darkly ironic twist, he was playing a doctor working to respond to a flu pandemic.
In the video posted on Instagram, Kim also spoke out against the xenophobia and anti-Asian racism that’s risen since the coronavirus crisis began.
“Please, please stop the prejudice and senseless violence against Asian people,” he said. “Randomly beating elderly, sometimes homeless Asian Americans is cowardly, heartbreaking and it’s inexcusable.” Racist attacks against Asian people have been reported in Los Angeles, New York and other cities around the world.
Further he said in the video “Yes, I’m Asian. And yes, I have coronavirus. But I did not get it from China, I got it in America. In New York City,” Kim said in the Instagram video. “Despite what certain political leaders want to call it, I don’t consider the place where it’s from as important as the people who are sick and dying.”.
Kim, who was born in South Korea but raised in the U.S., also subtly addressed President Donald Trump‘s decision to refer to COVID-19 as “the Chinese virus,” which many have decried as racist. An image of the President’s prepared remarks on Thursday show the word “corona” crossed out and replaced with “Chinese.”
Related Article:
- Step to Step 4 Misconceptions about the Novel Coronavirus
- Get 10 Things You Want to Know Wuhan Coronavirus
- Do Face Masks Provide Protection From Coronavirus?
- Get Best COVID-19 Prevention Tips
News Source: Time
No comments