Forum at Sacramento State to address xenophobia amid coronavirus outbreak
Insensitive incidents that fuel xenophobia, racism and discrimination targeting Asians have gone viral on social media since the novel coronavirus started spreading. One person was refused a shared ride. A journalist was fired after making a coronavirus joke on Twitter.
A community forum to discuss facts on the coronavirus and to help prevent unwarranted discrimination will be held Wednesday at Sacramento State University. It will be at 6 p.m. at the University Ballroom.
Asian American advocacy organization OCA Sacramento is organizing the event. Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg, Sacramento State President Robert S. Nelsen and Department of Health Services director Peter Beilenson will speak. State Sen. Richard Pan, D-Sacramento, will be in attendance. Archana Maniar, a University of California, Davis associate professor of medicine, will not represent the university, but will speak as a volunteer.
The forum will be a panel discussion. Speakers will have 30 minutes, followed by a 20-minute Q&A session for the audience and media.
The forum is open to the public, especially to students, parents and the Asian and Pacific Islander community, said Janice O’Malley Galizio, executive officer of OCA Sacramento.
“We just want to be proactive,” Galizio said of organizing the forum. “We haven’t heard of any hate crimes, but we want the community to understand this virus is not discriminatory and we should support each other in making sure our families are healthy and safe.
“We want them (elected officials) to see that the community is concerned about potential hate crime and increased discrimination.”
Free parking will be available in Parking Structure 2.
