Asian Canadian actor Russell Yuen was out on a nice walk in North Bay, Canada when he unintentionally became the victim of racial abuse. During his walk along the Lake Nipissing waterfront, Yuen was greeted by a couple who didn’t realize he was Asian. The man told Yuen that it was nice to be out of Toronto because of the “Chinese virus” thinking Yuen was white.

“The gentleman said ‘Oh it’s nice out here.’ and I said ‘yeah.’ and he said ‘It’s nice to be away from Toronto and the Chinese virus,” Yuen told CTV News.

Yuen then took off his sunglasses and that’s when the man realized he was Asian and started to go off and verbally abuse him.

“He said ‘Why are you not wearing a f***ing mask?’ and ‘get the f*** away from me’ and ‘what are you doing here,'” Yeun recalled.

Yuen said the man’s wife was cowering behind him while he was going off on his racist tirade. The two separated and went their own way but not before the man told Yuen to go back to China and to take the coronavirus with him.

Russell Yuen is a fourth-generation Canadian. He was born in Canada and currently lives in Montreal. He was in the city of North Bay for a film shoot.

After he recalled this racist incident publicly, many North Bay citizens apologized to him and condemned the behavior of the couple.

Deputy Mayor Tanya Vrebosch said the actions of one couple does not represent the city. “We’re a very welcoming, inclusive community,” she said.

Yuen called on people to unite during this pandemic.

“We’re all the same. Just because we look different doesn’t mean we’re different in thought,” Yuen said. “This isn’t the time for pointing fingers or blaming people for anything. This is the time where we have to unite.”