UK actor Jason Wong says he was racially discriminated in a newsagents in London by a shopper who feared he could have coronavirus because he is from Chinese descent.
Jason Wong, who starred in Guy Ritchie hit The Gentlemen, said the middle-aged man confronted him and asked: "Are you Chinese?" The 34-year-old actor, who was born in London, then began arguing with the shopper while recording the scene on his smartphone in Queen's Park on May 2.
Jason claims shop staff ''just stood there in silence'' during the dispute, which he claims is a case of COVID-19 racial prejudice causing fear among the East Asian community." In the video, Jason says the man ''came up to me and asked if I was Chinese and then came up to me and said he was scared that I was Chinese." The shopper, who appears to be speaking with an Irish accent, continues paying for his groceries while using a face mask and blue gloves.
He replied: ''It’s not your race.
It’s where corona comes from.
Look at the world.
The state of it.
What’s happening.'' The incensed actor then continued the dispute with the man claiming he ''decided to racially discriminate against me." ''Absolutely disgusting behaviour.
You should be ashamed of yourself,'' he adds to the camera.
Staff at the shop told local media that the argument began when the older man asked the actor, who also features in White Dragon, to stay two metres away from him.
Speaking after, Jason said that ''East Asians within the British community'' could be ''living in fear of being attacked because of racial discrimination.'' He said that he feared his mother, who is of East Asian descent, could also suffer prejudice when she goes out for her weekly shop.
The COVID-19 coronavirus originated in Wuhan, China, last year.
Jason added: ''No one else in the shop spoke up for me, they just stood there in silence which is fine.
But I think the key message there is that if people are being racist, you have to be outspoken and speak up for yourself because no one else will.''