CINCINNATI (WKRC) – Memories of the COVID-era backlash are still fresh for Asian American business leaders, who are warning that renewed political disputes with China could again fuel suspicion and harassment toward people of East Asian descent in the United States.
The Asia Chamber, based in Cincinnati with national and international reach, issued an open letter cautioning that major disputes with China can lead to harassment of Chinese Americans—and “really any Americans of East Asian descent”—regardless of how credible the underlying claims may be.
Memories of the COVID-era backlash are still fresh for Asian American business leaders, who are warning that renewed political disputes with China could again fuel suspicion and harassment toward people of East Asian descent in the United States. (WKRC, Provided)
The warning comes as President Donald Trump, in a speech promoting the Save America Act, blamed China for meddling in U.S. elections dating back to 2018.
“Starting during the 2020 election cycle, the People’s Republic of China carried out what is believed to be the largest compromise of election data in history, resulting in China’s illicit acquisition of 220 million U.S. voter files,” Trump said.
Leo Chan, who runs the Asia Chamber and has been involved for 20 years, said the post-COVID wave of discrimination was the worst he has seen. He said it peaked in the Tri-State in 2023, when a man shot into Tokyo Foods in Evendale, sending customers into a panic.
Memories of the COVID-era backlash are still fresh for Asian American business leaders, who are warning that renewed political disputes with China could again fuel suspicion and harassment toward people of East Asian descent in the United States. (WKRC file, Provided)
“It involved violence, vandalism, and burglary, as well, and of course, sometimes these [unfounded] accusations emboldened certain people to act out their disgruntled feelings or commotions out in the public,” Chan said.
Chan said one positive sign is what he described as a more measured response to Trump’s remarks, with much of what he has seen being cautious and carefully worded—an improvement from the COVID era.
Police at the time said they did not have enough information to consider the Tokyo Foods shooting a hate crime.
