In the past, her sales job at a packaged food company took her to business conferences around the world. But she hasn’t left China since early 2020 and is taking her sales calls online rather than in person in Thailand, Germany, Morocco and elsewhere.
While most countries have reopened their borders and resumed travel back to pre-Covid levels, China has remained extremely conservative in its approach and continues to adhere to a strict and uncompromising “zero-Covid” policy.
While these policies keep Chinese people out, they also keep most foreigners out, making people like Yu less likely to interact with people from other countries.
And while China has yet to announce a plan to remove quarantine and other obstacles to international travel, Yu can’t wait to get back on the road and travel again.
There is one exception, however – she has big reservations about visiting the United States.
As the East looks to the West
Scott Moskowitz, APAC geopolitical risk analyst at the decision-making intelligence firm Morning Consult, says state-controlled media in China has given examples of anti-Asian violence in the US to make its citizens less interested in going there.
It’s “a strategically organized ecosystem that over-reports and sensationalizes negative foreign news compared to tight controls over coverage of challenging or disruptive domestic instances,” he says.
And Yu’s beliefs confirm this.
“They look at people in a discriminatory way [lá]”, she says. “Not just for the Chinese, but for the blacks. It is very difficult to get fair treatment for all people in the United States.”
She adds that she spoke to friends who had visited the US, claiming they were detained and searched by customs agents before being allowed to leave the airport.
Yu is part of a growing community of Chinese travelers who say anti-Asian discrimination in the US has made them afraid to visit one day.
This month, Morning Consult published a study on this exact trend. Their findings, based on a survey of 1,000 adults, showed that “a plurality of Chinese have little or no interest in traveling to the US,” with violence and anti-Asian discrimination both cited as factors.
According to Morning Consult data, 22% of mainland Chinese respondents are “not at all interested” in visiting the US, with another 23% saying they are “not that interested”.
Of those surveyed, 57% say violent crime is the main reason they don’t want to go to the US, while 52% cite terrorism, 36% say petty crime, and 44% say they are concerned about anti-China bias. by the locations.
Mass shootings are another specific concern, with “those who saw, read or heard about the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas” earlier this year “much more likely to cite violent crime as a reason not to travel” to the country, Morning Consult says in its report.
Instead, some Chinese travelers are now looking elsewhere, with destinations in Europe clearly favored over the United States, according to the survey.
The Rise of Violence
Amid the pandemic, there has been an increase in anti-Asian harassment around the world, largely a result of misinformation or misguided aggression about the origins of Covid-19.
The non-partisan Stop AAPI Hate coalition provides a place for people to report harassment and attacks.
Perhaps the most covered anti-Asian hate attack in the United States since the start of the pandemic has been the “Atlanta spa murders,” during which eight women in three different massage parlors were shot and killed by Robert Aaron Long, a White man. Six of the eight victims were Asian and Long was charged with hate crimes in addition to the murders.
Last year, New York Congresswoman Grace Meng introduced the Covid-19 Hate Crimes Bill, which was signed into law by President Joe Biden.
Meng, who is of Taiwanese descent, represents parts of Queens, the diverse neighborhood of New York City that is home to many Asian Americans.
These incidents – which range from street harassment to physical violence – get significant coverage outside the US, including China.
Current geopolitical tensions are not helping. Moskowitz says the perception that the US is China’s biggest rival has only heightened attention to stories of anti-Asian discrimination or violence in the country, although similar incidents occur elsewhere as well.
“This differential is especially exaggerated in terms of reporting [da mídia estatal chinesa] about the US compared to Europe and elsewhere. Some of this is strategic and intentional, curated to lessen the appeal and soft power of the country that China sees as its big rival, both politically and ideologically,” he told the press. CNN Travel
“There are strong perceptions in China that there is a lot of global prejudice against their country,” adds Moskowitz. Personal and national identities are strongly linked in China, so there may be concerns that more macro and political resentment and resentment [reais e percebidos] with a country are geared towards the individual when traveling abroad”.
How to change perceptions
While changing the way Chinese travelers view the US won’t happen overnight, it’s not impossible.
“The results of this survey specifically suggest that travel and destination companies should double down on safety-related messaging in marketing campaigns targeting Chinese consumers,” says Lindsey Roeschke, travel and hospitality analyst at Morning Consult, who co-authored the research with Moskowitz.
She adds: “Travel brands should provide pre-departure information about safety tools and tips. Those wishing to take additional steps may consider providing access to security-oriented tour guides or a designated personal security representative during travelers’ stays.”
Some countries have given specific warnings to their citizens about travel to the US, specifically with regard to gun violence.
In 2019, Amnesty International issued a warning to people urging them to “use caution and have an emergency contingency plan in place when traveling across the US” due to gun violence.
As for Cannon Yu, she’s still looking forward to traveling anywhere outside of China once it becomes less difficult.
Despite everything, she is still curious about the US and hopes to be able to see it for herself.
In particular, there’s one place on your bucket list – Las Vegas. “I want to play,” she says. And then, after a pause, she continues, “I want to make friends.”
Source: CNN Brasil
I’m James Harper, a highly experienced and accomplished news writer for World Stock Market. I have been writing in the Politics section of the website for over five years, providing readers with up-to-date and insightful information about current events in politics. My work is widely read and respected by many industry professionals as well as laymen.
