Alibaba Co-Founder Says Asian Americans Get 'Scapegoated' In Times Of Crises

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd BABA co-founder Joe Tsai believes that Asian Americans get “scapegoated” whenever there is a crisis in the U.S.

What Happened: In an interview with CNBC, Tsai noted that when the U.S. economy is doing well, Asian Americans “play by the rules” and prosper together with everybody else.

“But if there’s a crisis - if there’s a pandemic, if there’s a war or if there’s an economic downturn - Asian Americans get scapegoated,” the owner of NBA’s Brooklyn Nets added.

“Everybody thinks Covid came from China, and as a Chinese person, I felt it personally,” Tsai, who was born in Taiwan, said.

Tsai also commented on fellow Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma, saying he’s “lying low right now.” Ma has almost disappeared from public view after China’s regulators intensified their crackdown against Ma and Alibaba since last year.

See Also: Where's Alibaba's Jack Ma And What's He Up To?

Why It Matters: People of Asian origin in the U.S. have been subject to rising violence amid the pandemic as COVID-19 appeared to emerge from China. Former U.S. President Donald Trump had also repeatedly linked the pandemic to China.

According to data from the Center for the Study of Hate & Extremism (CSHE) at California State University, San Bernardino, anti-Asian hate crimes in America’s 16 largest cities surged by 164% in the first quarter of 2021 as compared to the same period last year.

In May, President Joe Biden signed an executive action condemning racism and acts of anti-Asian violence in the United States. The bill also gives additional tools to law enforcement to investigate such incidents.

Price Action: Alibaba shares closed 1.8% lower in Tuesday’s trading at $210.06.

Read Next: Alibaba's Taobao Shopping Site Succumbs To Colossal Data Leak: WSJ

Photo by RISE on Flickr