CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Chicago’s Chinese-American community is denouncing anti-Asian sentiment that across the country that’s been apparent since early in the pandemic.
There is fear in Chicago's Chinatown and mental stress to hear some residents tell it.
Dr. Hong Liu, executive director of the Midwest Asian Health Association, said she’s seeing more Chinatown residents seeking mental health treatment.
“The Association’s mental health clinic has seen an increase in the number of patients, especially the Chinese residents in the community, with mental health stress, fear, anxiety and even suicide attempts," she said.
She said people are afraid to go to work, to school, or to the park and some business owners have been closing early over fear that they could be targets.
David Wu, with the Puitak Center, which serves immigrants, many working in restaurants in Chinatown, said “they come to America hoping for a new life, and especially during the pandemic they’ve been faced with racist incidents, sometimes blaming Asians and Chinese for the virus.”
The police commander for the district that includes Chinatown, Don Jerome, said police are not seeing an increase in hate crimes or an uptick in Asian-American crime victims anywhere in the city.
He did acknowledge that some non-violent incidents may go unreported.
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“This state of fear is unacceptable and we cannot tolerate this," said Alderman Byron Sigcho-Lopez.
There will be a rally in Chinatown on Saturday, March 27 to denounce anti-Asian sentiment.
Businesses have been especially hard-hit by the pandemic.
Restaurants and other businesses in Chinatown saw a dramatic drop in customers just after the first cases of COVID-19 were reported in the US, before the pandemic was declared.
And Dr. Lui said that has continued to today.
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