McDonald’s Incident Follows Wave Of Racist Targeting Of Africans In Guangzhou, China

McDonald’s (MCD) has apologized after one of its branches in the Chinese city of Guangzhou apparently prohibited black people from entering the outlet over fears of coronavirus.

The fast food giant also temporarily closed the branch in question.

A video posted on social media depicted a man holding a sign in English which stated blacks were barred from the premises. "We've been informed that from now on black people are not allowed to enter the restaurant,” the note read. "For the sake of your health… notify the local police for medical isolation. Please understand the inconvenience caused."

A spokesman for McDonald's stated: "Immediately upon learning of an unauthorized communication to our guests at a restaurant in Guangzhou, we removed the communication and temporarily closed the restaurant. As part of the temporary closure of this restaurant, we will take the opportunity to further educate managers and employees on our values, which includes serving all members of the communities in which we operate."

The incident follows a wave of recent incidents directed at Guangzhou’s African community who have been evicted from their homes and apartments, barred from entering certain hotels and forced to undergo coronavirus testing and quarantine – even if they had not travelled overseas or had a certificate attesting to their good health.

Guangzhou, which is located on the southeastern coast of China across the water from Hong Kong, is believed to have China’s largest community of Africans, comprising students, traders, businessmen, etc. They have long complained of discrimination and police harassment, but now fears over the coronavirus pandemic has made things worse.

The All African Association of Guangzhou wrote an open letter asking authorities to end “the inhuman treatment, hatred, and outright discrimination of Africans that is currently going on in Guangzhou.”

The letter added: “About 10 African community leaders in Guangzhou are technically under house arrest using the term quarantine. These actions are difficult to comprehend when you consider the fact that these are people whose official test results came back negative just one or two days ago.”

The U.S. consulate in Beijing has urged black Americans to avoid the region until further notice and also warned that people of African origin were also turned away from some bars.

“Officials in the Guangzhou metropolitan area escalated scrutiny of foreign nationals,” the consulate stated. “As part of this campaign, police ordered bars and restaurants not to serve clients who appear to be of African origin. Moreover, local officials launched a round of mandatory tests for COVID-19, followed by mandatory self-quarantine, for anyone with ‘African contacts,’ regardless of recent travel history or previous quarantine completion.”

African governments and diplomats have expressed their outrage over the treatment of their nationals in China.

In response, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Zhao Lijian said: “We reject differential treatment, and we have zero tolerance for discrimination.”

Chinese officials have reportedly eased the forced testing of Africans in Guangzhou, while some evicted Africans have since found new lodgings.

Guangzhou confirmed a total of 119 imported cases of coronavirus, with 25 identified as foreign citizens, the city’s Mayor Wen Guohui said on Sunday.

“Guangzhou is an open-minded metropolis,” he said. “It’s our consistent principle to have zero tolerance for discriminatory comments and behavior.”

Danny Vincent of BBC News in Hong Kong reported that after their forced evictions many Africans were “sleeping on the streets, in hotel lobbies, under bridges and outside police stations.”

The African community in Guangzhou has been falling in recent years, Vincent noted.

“There were once thought to be hundreds of thousands from the continent conducting business in the city, but today the number has fallen to just thousands,” he added. “Many [Africans] feel that their communities have been the target of discriminatory measures. Restrictions to visas have made many I have spoken to feel less welcome. Some feel that the coronavirus is being used as an excuse to target businessmen who overstay their visas.”

As many Africans have short-term business visas, they travel in and out of China several times annually, making it difficult to accurately gauge their population in the city.

In 2017, about 320,000 Africans entered or left China through Guangzhou.