WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump, who has been accused of racism in labeling the coronavirus pandemic the “Chinese virus,” said on Monday that Asian-Americans were not responsible for spreading the disease and needed to be protected.
Earlier on Monday, the New York Times cited advocacy groups and researchers as saying there had been a surge of verbal and physical assaults on Asian-Americans reported in newspapers and to tip lines as the virus has taken hold in the United States.
Trump last week ratcheted up his rhetoric against China over the coronavirus, saying Beijing should have acted faster to warn the world after the disease outbreak there. He also dismissed criticism that his labeling it the “Chinese virus” was racist.
He brushed aside a reporter’s question on Wednesday as to whether it was potentially harmful to Asian-Americans to give the disease that name, as wel