In view of concerns about stigma and racism surrounding the virus that has infected over 1,600 individuals, the World Health Organization will formally rename monkeypox.
The WHO Director General stated that the organization is "engaging with partners and experts from around the world on changing the nomenclature of the monkeypox virus."
Last Monday, more than 30 worldwide scientists declared that the term "monkeypox" is discriminatory and stigmatizing, and that it needs to be renamed "immediately."In 2021, the third best-selling EV in the United States was not a Tesla. The car was a Ford.
"Continued references to, and nomenclature of, this virus as African is not only erroneous, but also discriminatory and stigmatizing in the context of the current worldwide outbreak," says the report.
According to a WHO spokeswoman, scientists in orthopoxviruses — the family to which monkeypox belongs — are consulting on more appropriate names.
Monkeypox has been common in west and central Africa for decades, although most instances have been linked to animal spillover rather than human infection.