Introduction

The limited literature on the topic of collective terminology has had a resurgence since the COVID-19 outbreak, highlighting the issues with current terms and the need for change (Aspinall 2002; 2020). The year 2020 tested people on every continent – and not only because of COVID-19. The outbreak of the virus tested our physical health, our health systems, our governments, our economies, our collective mental health, our patience and our limits as human beings. The introduction of new language has tested our adaptability. The terms decolonise, white privilege and racial disparities are almost as popular as tiers, social distancing and PPE, when discussing the virus, making the link between COVID-19 and racism undoubtable. The effects of COVID-19 have unified us as humans sharing the same uncertain experience; however, it has not affected us equally.

COVID-19 has highlighted inequalities showing that UK ‘BAME’ (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic) communities are dying at higher rates (Bhala et al, 2020) than communities racialised as white British. While devastating, the pandemic has magnified the fragmentation of our society, bringing buried prejudices and years of systemic racism into sharper view. The use of collective terms during this pandemic and the subsequent broadcasting of statistics to the general public has, unsurprisingly, brought issues with labelling closer to the fore. In a discussion about racial language between Lincoln's Bar and Judiciary members, Thomas QC says, ‘whatever you label us is not the issue, the issue is how we are treated’ (Shotunde Sidhu and Thomas, 2020). Payne (2013: 394) sees ‘all aspects of identity as profoundly and intrinsically socially produced’, so if our labels infer otherness or imply derogation this will likely have a direct effect on the collective identity of people with a non-European heritage, and in turn the individual's mental health within these groups. Therefore, although ‘how we are treated’ is paramount, its salience need not be distinguished from ‘whatever you label us’, for they are one and the same, and both have the power to affect identity.