Storm Haiyan (Yolanda) Update: Is Canadian Teacher Jax Cote the New Devina Dediva? Issues Racist Comment on Filipinos at Height of Megatyphoon
While super typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) was battering the Philippines since Friday morning, making six landfalls, a social media storm is expected to happen soon in reaction to a racist comment made by a Canadian teacher at the height of the megatyphoon.
Fbnws.com reported on Friday a post made by Jax Cote from Vancouver, British Columbia, on the impact of the strongest storm to hit the world in 2013 on the Southeast Asian nation. She wrote: "so this means the world is getting rid a whole wack of Phillipino's about time God cleaned house!"
Her negative comment will surely invite harsh reactions from Filipinos all over the world in the same way that another teacher assistant, Devina Dediva, was the target of a hate campaign by Filipinos when she belittled the Miss World 2013 crown that Filipina Megan Young won, commenting that the country is a source of smelly domestic helpers who clean toilets overseas.
YouTube/MissMontuya 'J'
Ahead of the backlash, someone created on Friday a new Facebook account using the name Jax Cote with the apparent intent of using it to defend the real Ms Cote.
This account had two posts defending the racist comment.
The real account of Jax Cote, based on the photo in the fbNws.com article, lists her occupation as a teacher at a private elementary school and studied at Trent University. Although she lives in Vancouver, she is from Timmins, Ontario, according to her FB profile.
Ms Dediva was a teacher's assistant in Singapore and she reportedly lost her job because of her racist comment against Filipinos.
Ms Cote's rant came at about the same time that CNN made a positive comment about Filipinos based on their response to Yolanda.
"Time to get to know the Filipino people...unbelievably resilient, long suffering, good natured, uber friendly, loyal, ingenius, and a bunch of survivors.
"At the end of the day, the Filipinos will just shake off the dirt from their clothes and go about their businesss...and SMILE. They do not complain much, they will bear as long as they can.
"Maybe this is why they were given the 'privilege' of bearing the burden of the strongest typhoon ever recorded.
"The indomitable human spirit at its finest."
And that indomitable human spirit will definitely surpass the racist comments of people like Miss Cote and Miss Dediva who both will fade from oblivion after their self-created social media storm will hit them with a backlash stronger than Yolanda's 315 kph winds.
So far, official reports place the number of dead at four, injured at seven and people evacuated at 145,000. However, experts believe the numbers would go up as soon as provinces in central Philippines get their electricity back and reports come in from the field.
Here's the latest update on Haiyan which is the equivalent of a Category 5 Hurricane.
YouTube/Exo SoundJP