India, March 30 -- Racial slurs no longer bother Athoibee Kakchingtabam, a native of Manipur. However, it gets deeply hurtful when it comes from a 10-year-old child. In her 6-month short stint in New Delhi, she has encountered various types of name-calling everyday, mainly because she hails from the North-Eastern region of India, and for having a different accent and unique food habits.
However, ever since there has been a spike of COVID-19 cases across the country, she has noticed some very heartbreaking developments in the region. On a Sunday evening, while walking out of a mall in Kamla Nagar, New Delhi, she was called "Coronavirus."
"A 10-year-old girl approached me and just said the word 'Coronavirus'. I was shocked for a moment, thi...