Jeremy Lin, former NBA star, says he’s been called ‘coronavirus’ on court

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“As a nine-year NBA veteran, I’m not going to protect myself from being called ‘coronavirus’ in court, ” the former New York Knicks star wrote on Facebook.

Lin, who currently plays for the Santa Cruz Warriors, the G League daughter of the Golden State Warriors, on Thursday expressed fears of racism and violence against Asian Americans.

In his position, Lin talked about the different ways Asian Americans experience racism, prejudice and bigotry.

“Something is changing in this generation of Asian Americans. We are tired of hearing that we are not experiencing racism, we are tired of being told to keep our heads down and not make trouble,” he wrote. .

“We are tired of Asian-American children growing up and being asked where they REALLY come from, our eyes being mocked, being objectified as exotic or being told that we are inherently unattractive. We are the stereotypes in Hollywood. that limit our psyche and who we think we can be. We are tired of being invisible, being mistaken for our colleague, or hearing that our struggles are not so real.

In 2019, Lin became the first Asian American to win an NBA title playing for the Toronto Raptors. Lin became a household name in 2012 when he emerged as the breakout star of the New York Knicks. Its success was called “Linsanity”.

Lin, who has helped other Asian-American athletes combat racist stereotypes, is the latest high-profile figure to speak out to end violence against the AAPI community.

Earlier this month, actress Olivia Munn joined the search for a man who assaulted an Asian-American woman on the streets of New York, while actors Daniel Wu and Daniel Dae Kim teamed up to offer a $ 25,000 reward for information which led to an arrest in attacks. that took place in Oakland’s Chinatown.

A ‘very anxious time’ for AAPIs

Communities and advocates in the US have been on high alert in recent weeks following a series of recent attacks on Asian Americans.

While it’s unclear what’s fueling the more recent incidents, advocates and authorities have seen a pattern of targeted hatred since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

California is allocating $ 1.4 million to track down and stop attacks on Asian Americans
Cynthia Choi, co-executive director of Chinese for Affirmative Action, said the anti-Asian sentiment is linked to the false idea that Asians could be blamed for the pandemic.
Choi is also one of the co-founders of Stop APPI Hate, a coalition that has been documenting anti-Asian hatred and discrimination since March last year. Nearly a year since its inception, the coalition has received more than 3,000 first-hand reports of anti-Asian incidents, Choi said.

“It’s a very frightening time, a very fear-ruled, riddled time because Asian Americans feel they are experiencing so much racism and bigotry. Some are rightly afraid of leaving their homes,” Choi told CNN on Friday.

CNN’s David Close contributed to this report.

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