‘Viruses’: Racist kid verbally assaults Asian servers in coffee shop

A troubling TikTok video shows a violently racist kid verbally attacking Asian coffee shop workers, calling them "viruses."

The video, posted by @valplayoce, went viral on TikTok, garnering 3.3 million views. The video's caption reads: "This occurred so close to where I live, and it's sad to see that racist encounters like so occur every day in this world."

The recent incident occurred at Folks Gallery in Canberra, Australia, with a teenager thrusting his phone in a shop employee's face. 

"Viruses," he repeatedly says, as a slur used more regularly since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Then, he says something in another language that also appears to be disparaging of Asian people. 

Then the boy tells the server, "Why are you filming the back of my head? You already got my face."

He walks away toward his friends and then turns and spits on the ground near the coffee shop employee. 

The verbal attacks extend what has been a troubling period for Asians worldwide, who've rightly feared they are actively ethnically scapegoated for the COVD-19 pandemic and other associated economic woes.

In one report specific to Australia, a study on anti-Asian racism from the Australian National University showed that a "survey of more than 3,000 people found 84.5 percent of Asian Australians reported at least one instance of discrimination between January and October" of 2020."

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