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The Politics of Pandemic Othering: Putting COVID-19 in Global and Historical Context

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  • Dionne, Kim Yi
  • Turkmen, Fulya Felicity

Abstract

As COVID-19 began to spread around the world, so did reports of discrimination and violence against people from marginalized groups. We argue that in a global politics characterized by racialized inequality, pandemics such as COVID-19 exacerbate the marginalization of already oppressed groups. We review published research on previous pandemics to historicize pandemic othering and blame, and enumerate some of the consequences for politics, policy, and public health. Specifically, we draw on lessons from smallpox outbreaks, the third bubonic plague, the 1918 influenza pandemic, and more recent pandemics, such as HIV/AIDS, SARS, and Ebola. We also compile reports to document the discrimination and violence targeting marginalized groups early in the COVID-19 pandemic. This article lays bare the continuation of a long history of othering and blame during disease outbreaks and identifies needs for further inquiry to understand the persistence of these pandemic politics.

Suggested Citation

  • Dionne, Kim Yi & Turkmen, Fulya Felicity, 2020. "The Politics of Pandemic Othering: Putting COVID-19 in Global and Historical Context," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 74(S1), pages 213-230, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:intorg:v:74:y:2020:i:s1:p:e213-e230_11
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    Cited by:

    1. Carol Nash, 2021. "Challenges to Learners in Interpreting Self as Other, Post COVID-19," Challenges, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-24, November.
    2. Bo Zhou & Lei Jiang, 2022. "Unsustainable Urban Development Based on Temporary Workers: A Study on the Changes of Immigration in Macau between 1992 and 2019," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-19, November.
    3. Aleem Mahabir & Romario Anderson & Robert Kinlocke & Rose-Ann Smith & Kristinia Doughorty & Chandradath Madho, 2022. "Discourse, Difference, and Divergence: Exploring Media Representations and Online Public Sentiments toward Marginalized Urban Communities in Jamaica during the COVID-19 Pandemic," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-18, May.
    4. Pramod R. Regmi & Shovita Dhakal Adhikari & Nirmal Aryal & Sharada P. Wasti & Edwin van Teijlingen, 2022. "Fear, Stigma and Othering: The Impact of COVID-19 Rumours on Returnee Migrants and Muslim Populations of Nepal," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(15), pages 1-14, July.
    5. Youngwan Kim & Sang-Hwan Lee & Young Jun Cho, 2023. "Donor motivation in the era of the COVID-19 crisis: Focusing on South Korean health diplomacy and response aid to COVID-19," International Area Studies Review, Center for International Area Studies, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, vol. 26(1), pages 71-86, March.
    6. Shiyi Zhang & Panayiota Tsatsou & Lauren McLaren & Yimei Zhu, 2024. "Comparing location-specific and location-open social media data: methodological lessons from a study of blaming of minorities on Twitter during the COVID-19 pandemic," Journal of Computational Social Science, Springer, vol. 7(3), pages 2457-2479, December.
    7. Yoo, Nari & Jang, Sou Hyun, 2024. "Does social empathy moderate fear-induced minority blaming during the COVID-19 pandemic?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 346(C).
    8. Lonnie R. Snowden & Jonathan M. Snowden, 2021. "Coronavirus Trauma and African Americans’ Mental Health: Seizing Opportunities for Transformational Change," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(7), pages 1-10, March.
    9. Ho, Kung-Cheng & Yao, Chia-ling & Zhao, Chenfang & Pan, Zikui, 2022. "Modern health pandemic crises and stock price crash risk," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 448-463.
    10. Dušan Ristić & Dušan Marinković, 2022. "Biopolitics of othering during the COVID-19 pandemic," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 9(1), pages 1-8, December.
    11. Ojong, Nathanael & Agbe, Eyram, 2023. "“This is most likely not the correct vaccine”: Analyzing COVID-19's viral spread and vaccine anxieties in Ghana, Cameroon, and Malawi," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 329(C).

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