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Top Yale doc claims Trump administration’s handling of coronavirus pandemic is ‘close to genocide’

A YALE professor has shockingly claimed the Trump administration's handling of the coronavirus outbreak is “close to genocide.”

Gregg Gonsalves, an epidemiologist, tweeted on Wednesday that the number of people who have died from the coronavirus in the US nearly equates to “genocide by default.”

 Gregg Gonsalves, an epidemiologist and assistant professor at Yale, said the number of coronavirus deaths in the US is 'close to genocide'
Gregg Gonsalves, an epidemiologist and assistant professor at Yale, said the number of coronavirus deaths in the US is 'close to genocide'Credit: John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation

“How many people will die this summer, before Election Day?” he tweeted.


Gonsalves said: “What else do you call mass death by public policy? #COVID19 #coronavirus.”

“So, what does it mean to let thousands die by negligence, omission, failure to act, in a legal sense under international law?” he tweeted.


Gonsalves' tweets sparked outrage from a few Twitter users, one of whom said the Yale professor's remarks were "pathetic and irresponsible in the extreme. You should be ashamed."

Another user said: "You sir are speaking like an anti-American. How dare you a in-person of color suggest such lunacy and fear in our communities."

"Are you not concerned about any death? Or would you rather be the catalyst (sic) of sustainable anger energy. People like you make me laugh."

"You win the most asinine comment of the day award. And, [by the way], no one is forcing anyone to leave their home. It is about personal choice - something you apparently do not understand. Perhaps you would be happier in China?" another social media user wrote.

As of Wednesday, 1,245,900 positive cases of coronavirus have been reported, with more than 73,000 deaths.

Minorities, particularly black people, are dying in disproportionate numbers from the virus in the US.

People of color have been especially exposed to the virus because they are more likely to hold jobs that are deemed essential amid the outbreak.


And as states start to reopen, minorities are likely to be among those whose workplaces open first.

For example, in New York City — the epicenter of the country’s outbreak — black people make up just under 25 percent of the population, but more than 40 percent of public transit workers.

President Donald Trump suggested in recent weeks the death toll in the US would be around 60,000.

But on Sunday, Trump said 100,000 people could die in the US.

 President Donald Trump said on Sunday that 100,000 people in the US could die from the virus
President Donald Trump said on Sunday that 100,000 people in the US could die from the virusCredit: EPA

“Look, we’re going to lose anywhere from 75,000, 80,000 to 100,000 people,” Trump said.

“That’s a horrible thing. We shouldn’t lose one person out of this. This should have been stopped in China.”

Trump had reportedly been warned about the impact of the coronavirus in January and February of this year, and implemented travel restrictions on those coming from China on January 31.

It temporarily barred entry by foreign nationals who had traveled in China within the previous 14 days, with exceptions for the immediate family of US citizens and permanent residents.

President Trump predicts more coronavirus deaths will occur because of the lockdown being lifted

By that point, nearly 40 countries had already imposed travel restrictions on China, and most major airlines had suspended flights to China after several major international carriers stopped because of the outbreak.

The State Department had already told Americans not to travel to China because of the outbreak.

On March 10, Trump said: “Just stay calm. It will go away.”

The coronavirus was declared a global pandemic on March 11 — which is when he declared a national emergency and announced the European travel ban.

Trump has blamed China for the outbreak, and on Tuesday said he would soon reveal the origins of the coronavirus, which he suspects came from a Wuhan laboratory.

"We will be reporting very definitively over a period of time," the president told reporters while in Arizona.

"We want them [China] to be transparent. We want to find out what happened so it never happens again."

On Sunday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said there was "a significant amount of evidence that [the virus] came from that laboratory in Wuhan.”