Body as disease. (17th October 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Oh, David C.
• Is Part Of: Journal of applied communication research. Volume 50(2022)Supplement 1
• Page Start: S40
• Page End: S45
• Publication Date: 2022-10-17
• Subjects: Microaggression -- colorblindness -- body as contagion -- Asian American -- threat; Electronic journals; Communication -- Periodicals; 302.2072
• DOI: 10.1080/00909882.2022.2079914
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0090-9882

Abstract

ABSTRACT: The essay is a reflection on my experience of isolation on campus as my body was marked as a carrier of disease. Locating the essay in the literature about fears of Asian Americans as an alien presence and a yellow peril threat and on the work on microaggressions in academia, I understand my colleagues' avoidance as rooted in racialized fears of COVID-19. This demonstrates the problems of colorblind racism and the limits of allyship. Through connecting the BLM protests and COVID-19, the shared risk to Black and Asian American bodies becomes highly salient, and it points to an opportunity for Black-Asian solidarity that can present a substantive challenge to White supremacy.