I am sure that basketball fans and those hailing from New York have been mentioning one name for several weeks, and that name is Jeremy Lin.
He was just a bench warmer from a humble background, just about to be cut from the league, until one game thrust his career into the spotlight.
He is now the starting point guard for the New York Knicks and his performance has been phenomenal.
He is the first Asian-American player in the NBA and he is also a Harvard University graduate.
Catch phrases such as "Lin-sanity," "Lin-sational" and "Lin-credible" have captured the attention of the basketball fans.
Lin's autograph used to be $29, but now it sells for over $1,500 on eBay. In addition, Lin is now an athletic brand, raking in $14 million and growing, according to Forbes Magazine.
This is good news for the struggling Knicks team and the NBA overall.
However, to the Asian-American population, his success story in the NBA is not just a Cinderella story. It is a story that they have been long awaiting.
The representation of Asian-Americans in the public or the popular culture since the time of early immigration has been rather sub par despite the presence of a large population.
Lin's arising presence has created a whole new set of debates across the country.
The recent suspension of the ESPN's anchor Max Bretos due to his statement "chink in the armor," in reference to Lin, brings the issue of continued racism against Asians or Asian-Americans to journalism's frontlines.
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ESPN has since repetitiously apologized to the Asian-American community publicly for their erroneous and offensive comments.
The simple fact is that the Asian-American population has been long absent from the mass public, and there is not enough knowledge about the community.
Some have used their ignorance as an excuse to shy away from the responsibility, but other people genuinely do not know enough about the community to understand what is offensive or not offensive.
However, that does not mean you can't ask for an explanation or a simple inquiry, and that is what the U.S. public lacks right now.
The U.S. public does not want to know or is not curious about this racial sensitivity pertaining to the Asian-American population.
Jeremy Lin is a phenomenal basketball player, but he should not be thrown into stardom just because he is the first Asian-American NBA basketball player. He should be celebrated for his talents.
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