High-profile Channel Nine presenter Tracy Vo reveals her racism ordeal in a cafe – and how her boyfriend punched an unwitting stranger who warned him ‘not to be received by this Asian woman’
Tracy Vo racially abused over breakfast with her partner in cafe Perth
Channel Nine newscaster took to Twitter to recall the incident and stylish response
Popular Australian-born presenter has always been proud of her Vietnamese heritage
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A popular TV host has shared how she was racially abused over breakfast with her partner.
Channel Nine Perth news anchor Tracy Vo, 38, was inundated with support from colleagues and viewers after she took to Twitter on Tuesday to recall the shocking encounter and her stylish response.
Born to Vietnamese parents, who arrived in Australia before her birth, the journalist was in a cafe with her partner Liam Connolly on Monday when the couple was interrupted and confronted by a stranger.
She said the woman labeled her family as communists before turning to Vo’s partner, who politely asked to leave them alone.
Vo said she kept calm and kept a smile on her face during the ordeal.
Liam Connolly (left) jumped into a cafe in defense of his partner Tracy Vo on Monday
Channel Nine host Tracy Vo recalled the harrowing ordeal and her stylish response
“To the lady who reminded us that intolerant and short-sighted people still exist, sorry for ruining your day,” Vo’s tweet thread began.
“When you tried to ruin a delicious breakfast I had with my partner at our local cafe yesterday, you didn’t. When you called my family communists, I laughed it off…
‘When you tried to convince my partner, who is of Irish descent, to ‘not be had by this Asian woman’, he politely asked you to continue. He was calm and I smiled… “sorry lady, we won’t be received by you”.’
Vo was soon inundated with support.
“I’m sorry this happened to you, TVo. Absolutely mean,” Channel Nine colleague Natalia Cooper said.
Another added: ‘I think the lady was just jealous that you are so beautiful and have a fantastic partner’.
The popular newscaster has been with Channel Nine since 2007 in a variety of roles
Others congratulated Vo and her partner on their stylish response.
‘Good of you to stay calm! Stay strong!’ a fan wrote.
Another added: ‘Good for your partner, I’m not sure I would have kept that calm’.
Last week it was 44 years since Vo’s parents arrived in Perth as refugees after fleeing Vietnam in the late 1970s.
Vo is proud of her heritage and previously wrote a book called ‘Small Bamboo’ about her parents’ experiences fleeing Vietnam after the war.
Tracy Vo was born and raised in Perth after her parents arrived in Australia in 1978
She spent her early journalistic days working on radio and Sky News Australia, but has been with Channel Nine since 2007.
In early 2020, Vo moved from her hometown of Perth to Sydney after being promoted as a newsreader on the Today show.
But the role was short-lived after Vo returned to Perth, just before Western Australia closed its borders due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Her decision to return was prompted by her elderly father who suffered from Morvan syndrome, a rare autoimmune disease.
“I really miss the Today show guys and it was just a family decision, purely a family decision,” Vo said at the time.
“I’m still part of the family and I miss them very much – but it was just one of those things, I had to do it, you know.”