By now you’ve all heard about Linsanity right? If you haven’t, google Jeremy Lin, he is pretty much kicking butt in the NBA right now for the Knicks. Lin is Asian and a lot of people have been saying that all the hype about Lin is simply because of that fact. Tonight fighter Floyd Mayweather, a boxer, tweeted:
“Jeremy Lin is a good player but all the hype is because he’s Asian. Black players do what he does every night and don’t get the same praise.”
After getting quite a negative response to that he went on to tweet:
“Other countries get to support/cheer their athletes and everything is fine. As soon as I support Black American athletes, I get criticized.”
“Wow what a country.”
So where do I start…
I think it’s all fine and dandy that he wants to support black american athletes but I don’t get why he has to chock up the hype surrounding Lin to the fact that he is Asian. The truth is this; Lin is a good player, he is doing a lot for his team this season and deserves the attention that he has been receiving.
I could see if black american athletes did not receive praise for what they do, but even as someone who doesn’t follow sports too closely, I’ve always heard a majority of the praise going to said black american athletes. Kobe and Lebron have been two athletes who over the years have received so much attention because of their abilities.
I think that the comments he made were unnecessary. However, I do believe every one is entitled to their own opinions and if he feels that way, he feels that way. Like my previous post Things you should never have to apologize for says, if he truly believes that way, then he shouldn’t have to say sorry. But I think it was the wrong message to send. You don’t give praise by taking it from someone else, and you don’t take praise well earned from someone who deserves it just to prove a point.
Yeah, Asians are usually not in the spot light when it comes to things like sports but that doesn’t mean that it can’t be done. Lin proves that point. Does being Asian have something to do with the hype? I say that it’s a part of it but only because he is so good, that’s the part that comes first. If he wasn’t good then the attention would have never come in the first place to even debate about the impact his race has on the whole situation.
I say why does it matter if the person is black american, asian american, white or any thing else? If you’re good at what you do, you’re good at what you do, end of debate.
What do you guys think about the situation?
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