Trump calls coronavirus ‘kung flu’ at Tulsa rally
- Trump used the racial term after saying that there were multiple names for the virus
- US president had previously been criticised for referring to it as the ‘Chinese virus’
US President Donald Trump called the coronavirus “kung flu” during a rally in Oklahoma, employing a slang term that’s been criticised as racist while claiming increased diagnostic testing has driven up US case totals.
The Trump campaign distributed masks to people entering the arena but few in the audience wore them.
Trump complained that he was criticised for risking the health of his supporters by holding his indoor rally, saying that nationwide protests against police brutality this month should have endured similar scrutiny.
“You never hear them saying: ‘they’re not wearing their mask’,” during coverage of the protests, he said. The coronavirus is believed to be much more easily spread indoors at close quarters than outdoors.
The president then mused about the term Covid-19, short for Coronavirus Disease 2019, often used as official shorthand for the disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2.