1887
image of Asymmetric discursive struggle

Abstract

Abstract

Focusing on the 2020 case of Okonkwonwoye (a Nigerian man) who attacked Wang (a Chinese nurse), this study analysed over 37,000 posts and comments from Weibo (a popular Chinese microblogging platform) to explore the representation and contestation of Africanness and Blackness in Chinese cyberspace. Utilising a mixed-methods approach combining thematic and critical discourse analyses, the study argues that digital racial conflict in this context is best understood as an “asymmetric discursive struggle”. The findings revealed a racist discourse that constructs Black people as a dehumanised and dangerous “Other” through animalistic nomination and ethnocentric predication, while framing African immigrants as an illegitimate demographic threat via nativist threat inflation. Contrastingly, the counter-discourse, while challenging these narratives, is quantitatively marginalised and qualitatively marked by cautious mitigation. This asymmetry demonstrates how the linguistic forms of online debate can reinforce and normalise dominant racial ideologies, revealing the unequal power dynamics that structure the entire discursive field.

Available under the CC BY 4.0 license.
Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journals/10.1075/jlac.00143.gu
2026-01-12
2026-02-17
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

/deliver/fulltext/10.1075/jlac.00143.gu/jlac.00143.gu.html?itemId=/content/journals/10.1075/jlac.00143.gu&mimeType=html&fmt=ahah

References

  1. Aristotle
    Aristotle 2004Rhetoric [Ρητορική]. Thessaloniki: Zitros.
    [Google Scholar]
  2. Bernard, H. Russel, Amber Wutich, and Gery W. Ryan
    2017Analyzing Qualitative Data: Systematic Approaches. Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore, Washington DC, Melbourne: Sage.
    [Google Scholar]
  3. Bodomo, Adams
    2020 “Historical and Contemporary Perspectives on Inequalities and Well-being of Africans in China.” Asian Ethnicity(): –. 10.1080/14631369.2020.1761246
    https://doi.org/10.1080/14631369.2020.1761246 [Google Scholar]
  4. Boukala, Salomi
    2016 “Rethinking Topos in the Discourse Historical Approach: Endoxon Seeking and Argumentation in Greek Media Discourses on ‘Islamist Terrorism’.” Discourse Studies(): –. 10.1177/1461445616634550
    https://doi.org/10.1177/1461445616634550 [Google Scholar]
  5. 2019European Identity and the Representation of Islam in the Mainstream Press: Argumentation and Media Discourse. Switzerland: Springer. 10.1007/978‑3‑319‑93314‑6
    https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-93314-6 [Google Scholar]
  6. Bouvier, Gwen
    2020 “Racist Call-Outs and Cancel Culture on Twitter: The Limitations of the Platform’s Ability to Define Issues of Social Justice.” Discourse, Context & Media: –. 10.1016/j.dcm.2020.100431
    https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dcm.2020.100431 [Google Scholar]
  7. Braun, Virginia, and Victoria Clarke
    2006 “Using Thematic Analysis in Psychology.” Qualitative Research in Psychology(): –. 10.1191/1478088706qp063oa
    https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa [Google Scholar]
  8. Cai, Yifan
    2023 “Popularizing Racial Discourse: The Visual and Verbal Representation of Africans in Chinese Social Media.” Asian Ethnicity(): –. 10.1080/14631369.2023.2192906
    https://doi.org/10.1080/14631369.2023.2192906 [Google Scholar]
  9. Caixin Global
    Caixin Global 2020 “Video of Nurse Allegedly Attacked by Foreign Covid-19 Patient Goes Viral.” April 2, 2020. https://www.caixinglobal.com/2020-04-02/video-of-nurse-allegedly-attacked-by-foreign-covid-19-patient-goes-viral-101537989.html
  10. Callahan, William A.
    2004 “National Insecurities: Humiliation, Salvation, and Chinese Nationalism.” Alternatives: –. 10.1177/030437540402900204
    https://doi.org/10.1177/030437540402900204 [Google Scholar]
  11. Carney, Nikita
    2016 “All Lives Matter, but so Does Race: Black Lives Matter and the Evolving Role of Social Media.” Humanity & Society(): –. 10.1177/0160597616643868
    https://doi.org/10.1177/0160597616643868 [Google Scholar]
  12. Carvalho, Paula, Danielle Caled, Cláudia Silva, Fernando Batista, and Ricardo Ribeiro
    2023 “The Expression of Hate Speech against Afro-Descendant, Roma, and LGBTQ+ communities in YouTube Comments.” Journal of Language Aggression and Conflict(): –. 10.1075/jlac.00085.car
    https://doi.org/10.1075/jlac.00085.car [Google Scholar]
  13. Castillo, Roberto
    2021African Transnational Mobility in China: Africans on the Move. London: Routledge.
    [Google Scholar]
  14. Cheng, Yinghong
    2011 “From Campus Racism to Cyber Racism: Discourse of Race and Chinese Nationalism.” The China Quarterly: –. 10.1017/S0305741011000658
    https://doi.org/10.1017/S0305741011000658 [Google Scholar]
  15. Cohen, Jacob
    1960 “A Coefficient of Agreement for Nominal Scales.” Educational and Psychological Measurement(): –. 10.1177/001316446002000104
    https://doi.org/10.1177/001316446002000104 [Google Scholar]
  16. Dapper, Olfert
    1688 “Naukeurige Beschryving der Eilanden in de Archipel der Middlellandesche Zee (Precise Description of the Islands in the Archipelago of the Mediterranean Sea).” Amsterdam: J. Von Meurs.
    [Google Scholar]
  17. Deabler, Alexandra
    2020 “McDonald’s in China Apologizes for Notice Banning Black Customers from Entering Restaurant.” Fox News. April 14, 2020. https://www.foxnews.com/food-drink/mcdonalds-china-apologizing-notice-banning-black-people
    [Google Scholar]
  18. DeLisle, Jacques, Avery Goldstein, and Guobin Yang
    2016 “Introduction: The Internet, Social Media, and a Changing China.” InThe Internet, Social Media, and a Changing China, edited byJacques DeLisle, Avery Goldstein, and Guobin Yang, –. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. 10.9783/9780812292664‑001
    https://doi.org/10.9783/9780812292664-001 [Google Scholar]
  19. Devlin, Anne Marie, and Clara Grant
    2017 “The Sexually Frustrated, the Dumb and the Libtard Traitors: A Typology of Insults Used in the Positioning of Multiple Others in Irish Online Discourse Relating to Refugees, Asylum Seekers, Immigrants and Migrants.” European Journal of Communication(): –. 10.1177/0267323117741081
    https://doi.org/10.1177/0267323117741081 [Google Scholar]
  20. Dikötter, Frank
    (2015) The Discourse of Race in Modern China. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  21. Dixon, Travis L.
    2016 “Understanding How the Internet and Social Media Accelerate Racial Stereotyping and Social Division: The Socially Mediated Stereotyping Model.” InRace and Gender in Electronic Media, edited byRebecca Ann Lind, –. London and New York: Routledge. 10.4324/9781315636801‑10
    https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315636801-10 [Google Scholar]
  22. Ekman, Mattias
    2019 “Anti-Immigration and Racist Discourse in Social Media.” European Journal of Communication(): –. 10.1177/0267323119886151
    https://doi.org/10.1177/0267323119886151 [Google Scholar]
  23. Esposito, Eleonora
    2024 “Discourse, Intersectionality, Critique: Theory, Methods and Practice.” Critical Discourse Studies(): –. 10.1080/17405904.2023.2230602
    https://doi.org/10.1080/17405904.2023.2230602 [Google Scholar]
  24. Fligstein, Neil
    2009Euroclash: The EU, European Identity and the Future of Europe. OUP. 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199580859.001.0001
    https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199580859.001.0001 [Google Scholar]
  25. Foucault, Michel
    1972The Archeology of Knowledge. Translated byA. M. Sheridan Smith. New York: Vintage Books.
    [Google Scholar]
  26. Frazier, Robeson Taj, and Lin Zhang
    2014 “Ethnic Identity and Racial Contestation in Cyberspace: Deconstructing the Chineseness of Lou Jing.” China Information(): –. 10.1177/0920203X14532224
    https://doi.org/10.1177/0920203X14532224 [Google Scholar]
  27. Global Times
    Global Times 2020 “Nigerian Man Tested Positive for COVID-19 Beats Nurse to Escape Quarantine in Guangzhou.” April 2, 2020. https://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1184500.shtml
  28. Goff, Philip Atiba, Jennifer L. Eberhardt, Melissa J. Williams, and Matthew Christian Jackson
    2008 “Not Yet Human: Implicit Knowledge, Historical Dehumanization, and Contemporary Consequences.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology(): –. 10.1037/0022‑3514.94.2.292
    https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.94.2.292 [Google Scholar]
  29. Gries, Peter Hays
    2004China’s New Nationalism: Pride, Politics, and Diplomacy. Berkeley, Los Angeles, London: University of California Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  30. Gu, Jiapei, and Janet Ho
    2024 “Anti-Black Sentiments in Chinese Weibo Discourse: A Critical Discourse Historical Analysis.” Social Semiotics(): –. 10.1080/10350330.2023.2210506
    https://doi.org/10.1080/10350330.2023.2210506 [Google Scholar]
  31. Gu, Jiapei, and Salomi Boukala
    2025 “Examining the Discursive Construction of Chinese Grassroots Cybernationalism: A Case Study on the Permanent Residence Law for Foreigners.” Journal of Language Aggression and Conflict(): –. 10.1075/jlac.00103.gu
    https://doi.org/10.1075/jlac.00103.gu [Google Scholar]
  32. Guo, Bei, and Ying Jiang
    2015 “Analyzing the Coexistence of Emerging Transparency and Tight Political Control on Weibo: Case Study of Weibo Broadcast of the Bo Xilai Trial.” The Journal of International Communication(): –. 10.1080/13216597.2014.998700
    https://doi.org/10.1080/13216597.2014.998700 [Google Scholar]
  33. Halliday, M. A. K., and Christian M. I. M. Matthiessen
    2014Halliday’s Introduction to Functional Grammar (4th ed.). London and New York: Routledge. 10.4324/9780203783771
    https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203783771 [Google Scholar]
  34. Hatalová, Henrieta
    2007 “The Dog as a Metaphor or Symbol in Chinese Popular Phraseology.” Asian and African Studies(): –.
    [Google Scholar]
  35. Ho, David Y. F.
    1985 “Prejudice, Colonialism, and Interethnic Relations: An East-West Dialogue.” Journal of Asian and African Studies(): –. 10.1177/002190968502000308
    https://doi.org/10.1177/002190968502000308 [Google Scholar]
  36. Huang, Guangzhi
    2019 “Policing Blacks in Guangzhou: How Public Security Constructs Africans as Sanfei.” Modern China(): –. 10.1177/0097700418787076
    https://doi.org/10.1177/0097700418787076 [Google Scholar]
  37. Jacka, Tamara
    2009 “Cultivating Citizens: Suzhi (Quality) Discourse in the PRC.” Positions: Asia Critique(): –. 10.1215/10679847‑2009‑013
    https://doi.org/10.1215/10679847-2009-013 [Google Scholar]
  38. Jaffe, Gabrielle
    2012 “Tinted Prejudice in China.” CNN. July 24, 2012. https://edition.cnn.com/2012/07/24/world/asia/china-tinted-prejudice
    [Google Scholar]
  39. Jiang, Emilia
    2020, April3. “Coronavirus Patient ‘Savagely Bites a Nurse’s Face When She Tried to Stop Him Running Away from Quarantine’.” Mail Online. April 3, 2020. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8184403/Coronavirus-patient-savagely-bites-nurses-face-bid-run-away-quarantine.html
    [Google Scholar]
  40. Johnson, M. Dujon
    2007Race and Racism in the Chinas: Chinese Racial Attitudes toward Africans and African-Americans. Bloomington: Author House.
    [Google Scholar]
  41. Kang, Youwei
    2002Datong Shu (Book of Great Universalism). Beijing: Huaxia Chubanshe.
    [Google Scholar]
  42. Ke, Xuedong, and Anna Du
    2007 “A Full Record of ‘Black Tribes’ in Guangzhou.” December 13, 2007. Guangzhou Daily.
    [Google Scholar]
  43. Khosravinik, Majid, and Eleonora Esposito
    2018 “Online Hate, Digital Discourse and Critique: Exploring Digitally-Mediated Discursive Practices of Gender-Based Hostility.” Lodz Papers in Pragmatics: –. 10.1515/lpp‑2018‑0003
    https://doi.org/10.1515/lpp-2018-0003 [Google Scholar]
  44. Kienpointner, Manfred
    2011 “Rhetoric.” InPragmatics in Practice, edited byJan-Ola Östman, and Jef Verschueren, –. Amsterdam and Philadelphia: John Benjamins. 10.1075/hoph.9.17kie
    https://doi.org/10.1075/hoph.9.17kie [Google Scholar]
  45. Kipnis, Andrew
    2006 “Suzhi: A Keyword Approach.” The China Quarterly: –. 10.1017/S0305741006000166
    https://doi.org/10.1017/S0305741006000166 [Google Scholar]
  46. Krzyżanowski, Michał
    2020 “Discursive Shifts and the Normalisation of Racism: Imaginaries of Immigration, Moral Panics and the Discourse of Contemporary Right-Wing Populism.” Social Semiotics(): –. 10.1080/10350330.2020.1766199
    https://doi.org/10.1080/10350330.2020.1766199 [Google Scholar]
  47. Lakoff, George, and Mark Turner
    2009More than Cool Reason: A Field Guide to Poetic Metaphor. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  48. Lan, Shanshan
    2017Mapping the New African Diaspora in China: Race and the Cultural Politics of Belonging. New York: Routledge. 10.4324/9781315562162
    https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315562162 [Google Scholar]
  49. Lee, Kim Ming, and Kam Yee Law
    2016 “Hong Kong Chinese ‘Orientalism’: Discourse Reflections on Studying Ethnic Minorities in Hong Kong.” InEthnic Minorities: Perceptions, Cultural Barriers and Health Inequalities, edited byAna Pratt, –. New York: Nova Science Publishers.
    [Google Scholar]
  50. Li, Anshan
    2015 “African Diaspora in China: Reality, Research and Reflection.” The Journal of Pan African Studies(): –.
    [Google Scholar]
  51. Li, Xuan, and Yan Liu
    2012 “A Comparison of Cultural Connotations between Chinese and English Animal Words.” Theory and Practice in Language Studies(): –. 10.4304/tpls.2.10.2178‑2182
    https://doi.org/10.4304/tpls.2.10.2178-2182 [Google Scholar]
  52. Liu, Tingting, Mingliang Xu, and Xu Chen
    2021 “Social Media, Gendered Anxiety and Disease-Related Misinformation: Discourses in Contemporary China’s Online Anti-African Sentiments.” Asian Journal of Communication(): –. 10.1080/01292986.2021.1941150
    https://doi.org/10.1080/01292986.2021.1941150 [Google Scholar]
  53. Lun, Shih
    1975 “On the ‘Black-Headed People’.” Chinese Studies in History(): –. 10.2753/CSH0009‑4633080102242
    https://doi.org/10.2753/CSH0009-4633080102242 [Google Scholar]
  54. Matamoros-Fernández, Ariadna
    2017 “Platformed Racism: The Mediation and Circulation of an Australian Race-Based Controversy on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.” Information, Communication & Society(): –. 10.1080/1369118X.2017.1293130
    https://doi.org/10.1080/1369118X.2017.1293130 [Google Scholar]
  55. Matei, Adrienne
    2019 “Call-Out Culture: How to Get It Right (and Wrong).” The Guardian. November 1, 2019. https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2019/nov/01/call-out-culture-obama-social-media
    [Google Scholar]
  56. Mathews, Gordon
    2011Ghetto at the Center of the World: Chungking Mansions, Hong Kong. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press. 10.7208/chicago/9780226510217.001.0001
    https://doi.org/10.7208/chicago/9780226510217.001.0001 [Google Scholar]
  57. Musolff, Andreas
    2015 “Dehumanizing Metaphors in UK Immigrant Debates in Press and Online Media.” Journal of Language Aggression and Conflict(): –. 10.1075/jlac.3.1.02mus
    https://doi.org/10.1075/jlac.3.1.02mus [Google Scholar]
  58. Ouassini, Anwar, Mostafa Amini, and Nabil Ouassini
    2022 “#ChinaMustexplain: Global Tweets, COVID-19, and Anti-Black Racism in China.” The Review of Black Political Economy(): –. 10.1177/0034644621992687
    https://doi.org/10.1177/0034644621992687 [Google Scholar]
  59. Owen, William Foster
    1984 “Interpretive Themes in Relational Communication.” Quarterly Journal of Speech(): –. 10.1080/00335638409383697
    https://doi.org/10.1080/00335638409383697 [Google Scholar]
  60. People’s Government of Guangdong Province
    People’s Government of Guangdong Province 2020 “一外籍确诊患者在医院打伤护士被立刑事案件 [A Foreign Confirmed Patient Assaulted a Nurse in the Hospital, and the Case has been Filed.].” April 2, 2020. www.gd.gov.cn/gdywdt/zwzt/fkyq/gdzxd/content/post_2963657.html
  61. Pfafman, Tessa M., Christopher J. Carpenter, and Yong Tang
    2015 “The Politics of Racism: Constructions of African Immigrants in China on ChinaSMACK.” Communication, Culture and Critique(): –. 10.1111/cccr.12098
    https://doi.org/10.1111/cccr.12098 [Google Scholar]
  62. Reisigl, Martin, and Ruth Wodak
    2005Discourse and Discrimination: Rhetorics of Racism and Antisemitism. London: Routledge. 10.4324/9780203993712
    https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203993712 [Google Scholar]
  63. Runyan, Anne Sisson
    2018 “What is Intersectionality and Why is it Important?.” Academe(): –. https://www.jstor.org/stable/26606288
    [Google Scholar]
  64. Santa Ana, Otto
    2002Brown Tide Rising: Metaphors of Latinos in Contemporary American Public Discourse. Austin: University of Texas Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  65. Shen, Simon
    2009 “A Constructed (Un)Reality on China’s Re-Entry into Africa: The Chinese Online Community Perception of Africa (2006–2008).” The Journal of Modern African Studies(): –. 10.1017/S0022278X09003991
    https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022278X09003991 [Google Scholar]
  66. Snow, Philip
    1989The Star Raft: China’s Encounter with Africa. New York: Cornell University Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  67. Speelman, Tabitha
    2023 “How China’s Online Nationalists Constrain Policymaking — the Case of Foreigners’ Permanent Residency Reform.” Journal of Contemporary China(): –. 10.1080/10670564.2022.2148458
    https://doi.org/10.1080/10670564.2022.2148458 [Google Scholar]
  68. Statista
    Statista 2023 “Number of Monthly Active Users of Weibo Corporation from 3rd Quarter of 2015 to 3rd Quarter of 2023.” https://www.statista.com/statistics/795303/china-mau-of-sina-weibo/
  69. Sulemana, Armiyaw, Ebenezer Fiifi Mensah, Samiratu Abdulai Moro, and Gideon Agyeman Kwaku Duah
    2025 “The Black Body in Context: A Phenomenological Experience of the Black Body within China.” African Identities: –. 10.1080/14725843.2025.2501793
    https://doi.org/10.1080/14725843.2025.2501793 [Google Scholar]
  70. Sullivan, Michael J.
    1994 “The 1988–89 Nanjing Anti-African Protests: Racial Nationalism or National Racism?.” The China Quarterly: –. 10.1017/S0305741000035839
    https://doi.org/10.1017/S0305741000035839 [Google Scholar]
  71. Sun, Fang-yuan
    2022 “The View of ‘Apes are Superior and Monkeys are Bad’ from the Perspective of Animal History: The Joint Construction of Political Metaphor, Animal Habits and Artistic Images.” Hebei Academic Journal(): –.
    [Google Scholar]
  72. Tajfel, Henri, and John Turner
    2004 “An Integrative Theory of Intergroup Conflict.” InOrganizational Identity: A Reader, edited byMary Jo Hatch, and Majken Schultz, –. New York: Oxford University Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  73. The British Psychological Society
    The British Psychological Society 2021 “Ethics Guidelines for Internet-Mediated Research.” https://www.bps.org.uk/guideline/ethics-guidelines-internet-mediated-research
  74. Törnberg, Anton, and Petter Törnberg
    2025 “White Supremacists Anonymous: How Digital Media Emotionally Energize Far-Right Movements.” Journal of Information Technology & Politics(): –. 10.1080/19331681.2023.2262459
    https://doi.org/10.1080/19331681.2023.2262459 [Google Scholar]
  75. van Dijk, Teun A.
    2013 “Ideology and Discourse.” InThe Oxford Handbook of Political Ideologies, edited byMichael Freeden, Lyman Tower Sargent, and Marc Stears, –. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199585977.013.007
    https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199585977.013.007 [Google Scholar]
  76. Wodak, Ruth
    2021The Politics of Fear: The Shameless Normalization of Far-Right Discourse. London, Thousand Oaks, New Delhi, and Singapore: Sage. 10.4135/9781529739664
    https://doi.org/10.4135/9781529739664 [Google Scholar]
  77. Wodak, Ruth, and Boukala Salomi
    2015 “European Identities and the Revival of Nationalism in the European Union: A Discourse Historical Approach.” Journal of Language and Politics(): –. 10.1075/jlp.14.1.05wod
    https://doi.org/10.1075/jlp.14.1.05wod [Google Scholar]
  78. Wyatt, Don J.
    2010The Blacks of Premodern China. University of Pennsylvania Press. 10.9783/9780812203585
    https://doi.org/10.9783/9780812203585 [Google Scholar]
  79. Xu, Yongzhang
    2019Gudai Zhongfei Guanxi Shigao (Historical Manucripts of Ancient Sino-African Relations). Shanghai: Shanghai Cishu Cubanshe.
    [Google Scholar]
  80. Xu, Charles Qining
    2025 “Bias against Black Immigrants and Black People among Chinese Online: An Empirical Study on the Video Platform Bilibili and its Floating Comments.” Cogent Social Science(): –. 10.1080/23311886.2025.2491709
    https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2025.2491709 [Google Scholar]
  81. Yan, Fu, and Zhenfu Zhou
    1959Yanfu Shiwenxuan (Selected Works of Yan Fan). Beijing: Renmin Wenxue Chubanshe
    [Google Scholar]
  82. Yan, Hairong
    2003 “Neoliberal Governmentality and Neohumanisim: Organizing Suzhi/Value Flow through Labor Recruitment Networks.” Cultural Anthropology: –. 10.1525/can.2003.18.4.493
    https://doi.org/10.1525/can.2003.18.4.493 [Google Scholar]
  83. Zhou, Yang
    2023 “Conflicts in Intergenerational Relationships and Patterns of Coordination among Chinese–African Families in Guangzhou.” Genealogy(): –. 10.3390/genealogy7040074
    https://doi.org/10.3390/genealogy7040074 [Google Scholar]
  84. Zhuravskaya, Ekaterina, Maria Petrova, and Ruben Enikolopov
    2020 “Political Effects of the Internet and Social Media.” Annual Review of Economics: –. 10.1146/annurev‑economics‑081919‑050239
    https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-economics-081919-050239 [Google Scholar]
/content/journals/10.1075/jlac.00143.gu
Loading
/content/journals/10.1075/jlac.00143.gu
Loading

Data & Media loading...

This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was successful
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error