The state of emergency created by the spread of cases of infection with the monkeypox virus does not prevent the World Health Organization from addressing a less important issue: the name of the disease.
The international body is asking the public to help find a less "insulting" name for monkeys, among other things because, according to the experts, the image created is a negative image towards monkeys, even though in practice they are not responsible for its spread among humans.
Also, there is a fear that the name of the disease will also stigmatize Africa and fuel racism due to the identification of the virus in parts of the continent.
"Monkeypox was a name given before the procedures for naming diseases were updated," a spokeswoman for the organization said on Tuesday.
"We really want to find a name that doesn't create a negative image, that's why we opened a dedicated website for that," she added, emphasizing that "it's very important that we find a new name for monkeypox because we don't want to harm any ethnic group, region, animal, etc."
The original name was given to the disease in 1958 because the virus was first detected in monkeys as part of research in Denmark, but it is also common in other animals, especially rodents.
Only in 1970 was it found in humans, in West Africa, where it remained endemic until the latest outbreak, which, as mentioned, led to many cases in the rest of the world as well.
Were we wrong?
We will fix it!
If you found an error in the article, we would appreciate it if you shared it with us