4. Diversity is critical to the bottom-line. Jeremy Lin would not be getting all of this attention if the Knicks were still losing. Rather, he is the missing cog that has helped transformed a team. He was in the right place at the right time, and surrounded by teammates who were anxious to buy into a common goal. Certainly, the team and Lin will continue to adapt, sometimes regress, and then push ahead. But the bottom line is winning, and Lin has enabled them to do just that; on the court, in the public eye, and on the Knicks’ balance sheet. Shares of the company that owns the Knicks have skyrocketed in value. Also, just try purchasing a Knicks basketball jersey with the name Lin on the back. They cannot make them fast enough.
5. Credentials only tell us so much. Credentials are abstractions, simplifications. Yes, they are important. But certain people, people who do not “look the part,” have a harder time getting noticed and “credentialed” so-to-speak.
6. Racism is still alive and well in the workplace today. We still believe that people who look like Jeremy Lin can or can’t do certain things, on or off the basketball court. The idea that all the hype around Lin is simply because he is Asian is hogwash. The advertisement posted by ESPN, after Lin had a bad game, read “C—-ks” in his Armor.” We understand the power of the “N-word,” but what about the “C-word?”
7. People react to social barriers in a variety of ways. Some buckle under the weight of barriers. Others ignore them, and still others use barriers as motivation. Jeremy Lin has done the latter. He hears talk about how he is deceptively athletic, and deceptively quick. Why is his athleticism deceptive? Could it be because he is profiled as an Asian American? He understands what he is up against, and it only motivates him to try harder and prove his doubters wrong.
8. A diverse workforce can broaden our reach and make us more successful. The Asian community, both here and abroad, are now following Lin in much greater numbers. And perhaps people of all races and backgrounds, who don’t “look the part” identify with Lin. It is documented that many people who are following and watching the Knicks at this point are not necessarily NBA fans. Maybe it’s because they are enthralled by this story of an underdog who makes good. Or maybe Lin comes across as a breath of fresh air, in a league dominated by overblown egos.
I think that Mr. Linn brought to the forefront not just what an amazing athlete he is but how he was overlooked in a sport that is dominated by African-Americans and Caucasians because he IS Asian-American. And as for the comment in the blog about using the “C-Word”, it is just as derogatory as the “n-word or the r-word” and people , especially professional entities should think about this before throwing it out there for the world to see. It is unacceptable and these entities need to understand that young readers are influenced by them.
I stumbbled across your blog while searching for blogs on diversity. I am loving all your blog entries so far and am glad that there is someone out there that is blogging about how diversity still has a long way to go and we cannot cover the fact that there is still racism and prejudism that is experienced in our society. I noticed that you are a faculty member at a community college. I personally think that we cannot undo this way of thinking unless our educators are the ones to implant this type of thinking into their students.
I have my Masters in Social Work and currently do school counseling at an Elementary School. I just attended a meeting with a Polynesian family. I can say that I am glad that I’ve gone to a school that has taught me that multiculturalism includes looking at the historical context of certain communities to try and understand why certain communities are the way that they are but am also deeply saddened that other professionals in my field are very unaware of how insensitive they can be to a lot of families of different backgrounds.
Thank you for being an educator that really takes multiculturalism into heart because, honestly, planting seeds in your students is the way to make them think about the actions that they do in the future.