US Chinese Churches on the Frontlines of Coronavirus Vigilance

By amazon Wednesday, February 26, 2020 Comment Edit

Attendance has dropped as much as 50 percent this year.

There has been no sustained community transmission of the coronavirus in the United States so far, and many Chinese churches such as Raleigh Chinese Christian Church (RCCC) are doing their best to keep it that way.

Taped to the entrance of the church’s glass doors is a yellow notice with the word “ATTENTION” in capital letters. It warns parents not to bring their children to church if they’ve traveled to Asia in the past 14 days.

Churches such as RCCC—a nondenominational congregation with services in Mandarin, Cantonese, and English—have taken it upon themselves to self-quarantine, in keeping with Centers for Disease Control guidance.

Many others have taken additional precautionary measures, such as canceling small group gatherings, Sunday lunches, and other communal events.

“I think there’s caution,” said Jerry Miller, RCCC’s youth pastor. “There may be a little bit of fear mixed in with that too, which is understandable.”

The outbreak of the virus, which began in Wuhan, China, has sickened thousands and has killed more than 2,700 people. At least 35 people in the US are infected with the so-called COVID-19 virus—all linked to overseas travel, including 18 people evacuated from the Diamond Princess, a cruise ship docked in Yokohama, Japan.

No Americans have died from the coronavirus thus far, and those infected have not spread it to the wider community.

Still, it is the Chinese American community that has borne the brunt of the health scare and it has also been the one to implement wide-ranging safety precautions.

The virus stanched communal celebrations of Chinese New Year, which fell on January 25. The lunar holiday is typically a time when hundreds ...