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After testing positive for the virus at the root of the current public health crisis, Lost actor Daniel Dae Kim shared some truths about the virus.
Not only did he share what it was like to be sick and recover, but he took the opportunity to emphasize how important it is to leave the racial slurs out of the conversation.
Kim posted twice this week about his relationship with the pandemic. Both of these posts were filled with the disappointment of having to address racial attacks in 2020.
On Monday, Kim shared a screenshot of a few of his recent tweets, addressing his silence throughout most of the virus' progression thus far. Like many others, he remained silent because of his disappointment, as well as his concern that one voice may not make the needed difference.
The post was well-received by his Instagram followers, many indicating their disgust against those who have referred to the global pandemic as "the Chinese virus" and those who blame the spread of the virus on Asian people.
Both of these racist actions, which Kim believes hinders the conversation and does nothing to spread useful information about the progress being made by leading scientists and doctors.
After the positive conversation that resulted from sharing the tweet, Kim decided to post again on Thursday, this time a 10-minute video, discussing what it was like to be diagnosed, his healing process and a call for people to call the virus what it actually is instead of a racist misnomer.
Kim explained in the video that his current show, New Amsterdam, was paused in-production due to the need for social distancing, so he flew home from New York on Sunday. Prior to his flight, he said he felt no symptoms of being ill, but during the flight, he developed a scratchy throat.
By the time he got home on Sunday, he self-quarantined and struggled with a fever, body aches and tightness in his chest.
He then tested positive on Wednesday, when he visited a drive-thru checking station. He returned home to self-quarantine and—as of the making of the video—says he feels mostly back to normal.
But the rest of his video focused on the need for everyone to take the virus and the need for social distancing seriously, so the pandemics spread can be brought under control.
He also emphasized the importance of being mindful about how we talk about the virus.
Because of some celebrities and influencers as well as President Donald Trump referring to the virus as "the Chinese virus" and others blaming Asian people as the cause of the spread, much of the social conversation surrounding the virus is hysterical, racially-charged and completely unhelpful.
Kim explained:
"Randomly beating elderly, sometimes homeless Asian Americans is cowardly, heartbreaking and inexcusable. Yes, I'm Asian, and yes, I have coronavirus, but I did not get it from China. I got it in America. In New York City."
"And despite what some political leaders want to call it, I don't consider the place where it's from as important as the people who are sick and dying. If I did, I would call this thing the New York virus, but that would be silly."
"The point is, the name-calling gets us nowhere. What matters is how best to take care of ourselves and one another."
Many on Instagram were grateful for Kim's message and hoped he was truly on the mend.
It's important for all of us to continue to take the necessary precautions to prevent the spread of the virus—and to of course, be mindful of how we're talking about it—so we can share the most insightful information possible.
Kim also thanked in his video the many health care workers, grocery store clerks, and others who continue to expose themselves to social environments every day, so we can go buy what we need as we need it. It's important for us to keep thanking them, too, and to keep thinking about how to make social environments as safe for them as possible.