Italy When Massimiliano Martigli Jiang stood in the middle of Florence, next to the sign "I am not a virus," many residents and tourists approached him.

Jiang, a Chinese-born Italian, posted a Facebook video last week of his experience in downtown Florence and attracted more than 10,000 shares and reports from many of the country's media.

Some passersby stopped, staring at Jiang. Others come to take a selfie with him. At the end of the video, everyone hugged Jiang, took off his mask and blindfolded him.

"I made this video because I felt compelled to convey the meaning of the words I wrote on the sign," he explained. "I was surprised by the reaction of the people."

Like other Western countries, stigma towards Chinese people in Italy is increasing due to the outbreak of corona pneumonia (Covid-19). Outbreaks in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, have occurred in 26 countries and territories, killing nearly 1,400 people and more than 64,400 people were infected.

Italy recorded two cases positive for the virus, a pair of tourists from Wuhan to the city of Milan on January 23. The country has stopped all flights to China.

There are more than 300,000 Chinese living in Italy. Successive waves of immigrants, mainly from the coastal city of Wenzhou, Zhejiang province, have created a large number of Chinese in cities, including Milan and Prato, 17 km northwest of Florence. .

Many stories of recent stigma have been reported by Italian media, such as two Chinese tourists who spit on a group of children in Venice or two Asians who were cursed by a passerby as "filthy". "in Florence.

The incident in Florence led Jiang, 29, to make his video on February 2. The video was uploaded by UGIC, a Chinese-Italian youth association of which Jiang is a member.

"Recently, anti-Chineseism has been increasing in Italy, but it has always existed," said Jiang, who came from Wenzhou to Italy with his parents at the age of 7. "I got used to it when hanging out with my friends. The corona virus is a global problem. I hope to find a cure for this virus as soon as possible."

Similar campaigns have emerged on social networks in recent weeks, including the hashtag on Twitter #JeNeSuisPasUnVirus, initiated by the Asian-American community in France to highlight the xenophobia they have experienced.

"This video is one of the things that made me sleepless the night before. I was anxiously awaiting criticism," Jiang wrote under a Facebook video last week. "But now, thank you for your kind words, you have touched me so much!"

Countries with patients infected with corona virus. Click on image to see details.