(Here’s the sign-up, if you don’t already get California Today delivered to your inbox.) The coronavirus outbreak that has killed more than 420 people in China is sending waves of panic around the world as it sickens thousands, scrambles travel and rattles economies. At the same time, fears about the outbreak have fueled racist sentiment both abroad and here in the U.S. — even as health officials note that the risk here is relatively low. On college campuses, students of Asian descent said they’ve been unsettled by the glares they get when they cough. At the University of California, Berkeley, a post by the university’s health services that said “xenophobia” would be a “normal” response to anxiety over the virus led to an immediate backlash, and the post’s removal.

Source: New York Times February 04, 2020 13:52 UTC