(Encore episode.) The coronavirus is all over the headlines these days. Accompanying those headlines? Suspicion and harassment of Asians and Asian Americans.

Our colleague Gene Demby, co-host of NPR’s Code Switch podcast, explains that this is part of a longer history in the United States of camouflaging xenophobia and racism as public health and hygiene concerns. We hear from historian Erika Lee, author of “America For Americans: A History Of Xenophobia In The United States.”

LEARN MORE:
Check out Code Switch’s full digital story and podcast episode.
And here’s a collection of NPR’s coverage on the rise in violence against Asian Americans.
Erika Lee’s book “America for Americans: A History of Xenophobia in the United States”