“The Real” Co-Host Jeannie Mai Gets Real About Racism Faced By Black And Asian Communities During Coronavirus

Jeannie Mai, co-host of the Emmy- and NAACP Image Award-winning daytime talk show The Real, sat down with Buzzfeed for an interview and got real about a topic that is really important to her— racism.

“There is something bigger right now that is really important to me. And that is the conversation about racism,” the Vietnamese and Chinese co-host told Buzzfeed.

It’s no secret that hate crimes against Asian Americans are on the rise during the COVID-19 pandemic. As the virus spread, the FBI warned there would be a spike in hate crimes against Asian Americans due to the Chinese origin of the virus. Donald Trump and other politicians referring to the virus as “China virus” or “Kung flu” has only added fuel to the fire.

“Let’s be honest, right now, there are two areas that have been highlighted during quarantine: the ongoing fight for the black community and the Asian community, which has also been facing a huge backlash due to the terminology we are using around the coronavirus and where it comes from,” Mai continued.

“The most recent occurrence [of racism] with Ahmaud Arbery obviously caught our attention and was absolutely deplorable, but it is also the fact that the black and brown communities are being hit harder than ever during this time; economically and socially, they have been terrible for them.”

Ahmaud Arbery, a black man, was gunned down by two white men while out jogging in a Georgia neighborhood back in February. The arrests of Gregory and Travis McMichael did not come until almost two months after the incident. A district attorney for the case originally referred to the murder as “legally justified.” Arbery’s case has highlighted ongoing corruption within the Glynn Police Department.

“This is a time when I really ask people to look inwardly at what they are doing to help end racism in their conversations, in their homes, in their ideologies, and in their communities,” she continued. “Out society continues to backtrack on any progress we have made when racism still exists.”

If you are the victim of a hate crime, please report it to your local police department and follow up with a tip to the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI).