MSG maker Ajinomoto wants to put an end to anti-Asian racism during COVID-19

Ajinomoto is out with a celeb-filled social campaign showing support of Asian American restaurants during the coronavirus pandemic. Margaret Cho, Harry Shum, Gail Simmons, and Jenny Yang are featured in at-home video clips compiled into an online video, calling out racist acts ranging from shunning Asian restaurants to defacing them due to ill-informed COVID-19 fears. The maker of MSG points out that according to research released in April, Chinese restaurants are closing at double the rate of others. “As if we needed to hear any more (bleeped) up stats right now,” comedian and writer Yang says in the video, while enjoying her own takeout meal. The call to action suggested by the company and its endorsers is easy: order Asian takeout, share the meals on social media with the hashtag #TakeOutHate, and tag friends and restaurants. “For the first time in history, the world needs you to post more food pictures on Instagram,” says actor and comedian Cho. Ajinomoto also says it is donating to the non-profit Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund. Back in January, the company took another stance against anti-Asian bigotry, pushing Merriam-Webster to redefine the term “Chinese Restaurant Syndrome" in the dictionary. Ajinomoto worked with Edelman on the campaign, which was released during Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month. Separately, Asian food delivery platform Chowbus is promoting that it allows diners to order from multiple restaurants in a single order without incurring extra fees, and says it has a larger delivery radius than other platforms, which may help restaurants get more business from patrons who aren’t nearby as people stay home. In Chicago, for example, it says it will deliver food from Chinatown restaurants to the suburbs.

MSG maker Ajinomoto wants to put an end to anti-Asian racism during COVID-19

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