If you are concerned about being tracked by people you don’t know, you’re not going to like this: Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan are going to be gathering about 80 million tweets sent in Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic but dating back to October 2019. They are looking for what they consider online hate directed at the Asian community. They say they will be investigating what makes a social media post racist and how does that hatred spread? Their contention is that hatred directed at the Asian community has risen dramatically during the pandemic.

Linguistics researcher Zhi Li has partnered with the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission and has been awarded $25 thousand to lead a team in tracking this particular version of online hate. Li will work with USask sociologist Hongming Cheng and USask adjunct computer scientist Roy Ka-Wei Lee as well as two grad students and one undergrad.

David Arnot, chief commissioner of the Commission says, “An evidence-based understanding of online hate and discrimination will illuminate social and structural divides in society, and help human rights agencies effect change.”