Jing Wang

With the rise of anti-Asian racism, science communication can play a vital role in fighting against racism. However, it can also fuel racial hatred and orientalist imagination, if done improperly.

In the aftermath of the killings in Georgia, New York Times published a news piece titled “China has approved its fifth COVID-19 vaccine, and it’s made from the ovary cells of hamsters.” The original title can be found in this Twitter thread.

Dr. Sandra Steingraber, a biologist and activist, rightly pointed out the orientalist and racist connotation in this NYT story headline.

She responded on Twitter, “This is such an irresponsible soft-racist headline. Hamster ovary cell lines are how labs all over the world make proteins. I repeat: they are universally used. They were developed in a Boston lab in 1957. Please STOP implying that the Chinese do weird things with animals.”

Her message, together with other commenters, made NYT change the title, with the following statement of correction.

“March 18, 2021 An earlier version of this item referred imprecisely to the process for manufacturing this vaccine. The process begins when the genetic code for the coronavirus spike protein is placed into a cell line established from hamster ovaries and grown in Petri dishes. The process does not involve implanting the protein into the ovary cells of live hamsters.”

We firmly stand with Dr. Sandra Steingraber and other commenters who debunk the racist myth of Asians.

Science communication without racism matters. The fabricated association of Chinese with weird animal-eating habits and inhuman treatment of animals must stop. We also urge journalists, reporters, and other media workers to use their voices against anti-Asian racism.