1. What is xenophobia? How does the term relate to the Covid-19 pandemic and the various decisions countries have made in dealing with the virus’s spread?

Xenophobia is the extreme dislike and prejudice for a particular culture or people from other countries; very similar to, if not exactly the same thing as,  racism.  This relates havilty to the Covid-19 pandemic as many people began to treat Asians differently, as the virus originally came from China.  Many countries also used the pandemic as a way to push forward with their own agenda to close their borders to certain groups of people.

2. In what ways does fear factor into the personal accounts and political decision making that Serhan and McLaughlin report on?

Fear factors into these personal accounts and political decisions as it causes people to look for someone to blame and for changes to be made.  When people became scared, they wanted to see the government make changes as a means to protect them, not really looking at the bigger picture, but simply looking for any change to occur.  Fear also makes people defensive and has them looking for someone to blame, thus creating an unfair prejudice and divide amongst people.

3. How does Serhan & McLaughlin’s journalistic piece relate to Cadogan’s first-person narrative?

This piece relates to Cadogan’s, as they both highlight recent experiences of racism and prejudice.  They show that these experiences are still very prevalent in today’s society and that people are being treated unfairly due to things that they simply cannot control, such as their race, ethnicity, or simply where they live.

4. What are your thoughts on travel bans (in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic)? Make your claim and then plant a skeptic or naysayer within the paragraph (name the skeptic, consider the extension of their counterargument, then show why you believe your claim is correct).

In the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, I believe that travel bans were likely a smart idea.  While I don’t agree with the idea of countries shutting their borders to a select few countries, I believe that slowing the spread of the disease was a necessary precaution to take.  While there are many people that are likely to say that these acts are strictly prejudiced, I will politely disagree.  Sure, there were some countries that closed their borders to a select few places as a way to fuel their own political agendas, but the spread did need to be slowed.  I believe that borders should have been closed, not only to specific countries, but to every country for a short period of time.  The slight delay in the virus allowed for a small window of time where people could get prepared for what was to come, and that I feel was a necessary precaution to take.