Jeremy Lin: It's OK to Be Weird, It's Not OK to Be Bullied
Charlotte Hornets guard Jeremy Lin was bullied as a child because of his Asian heritage. Now the Christian sports figure is speaking out about his past struggles in order to help others.
The bullying of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders is the focus of a new White House public awareness campaign called "Act To Change."
Lin, 27, decided to support the movement because of his own experiences, some of which he recalled in a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Ps3ioUmcfY&index=42&list=PLP2myFogEmOHmEYm29HUzGiTwpRNbos_f" target="_blank"> YouTube video shared in mid October.
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"For me, growing up Asian American and trying to play basketball was a bit tough at times," said Lin. "Sometimes people would make fun of me and just say, 'Oh, you're Yao Ming.'"
"That's not that bad, but sometimes it would get worse and people would say, 'You're a Chinese import' or 'go back to China' or 'can you see the scoreboard with your eyes?' And then sometimes it got really ridiculous."
Lin said people have addressed him using racial slurs, and the normally mild mannered basketball player became understandably upset. He even lashed out once.
"I remember one time I got really upset, kind of lost control and just responded really negatively. My coach told me after the game, 'Jeremy, when people say that to you they're trying to get in your head,'" Lin said. "Honestly the best thing to do is take that negative energy and turn it into positive energy. Fuel yourself, motivate yourself with that. Don't react in anger."
The Christian point guard shared lessons he learned from being bullied and encouraged others to embrace the things that make them different.
"My lesson that I learned, and if there is anything I can pass on to you guys, is a lot of times bullies bully other people because of insecurities they have in themselves. Don't let anyone else tell you who you are or what you can or can't do," he advised. "Definitely look inside yourself, have confidence in yourself, believe in yourself and understand what makes you such a unique and special person. Everybody has different and really cool characteristics and talents."
According to Lin, people can become stronger after surviving bullying.
" ... Always stay positive and hopefully one day you'll take a look back at these experiences and realize, 'Hey, me getting bullied or me having to go through these experiences only made me stronger," he said. "So hopefully, [if] I just pass anything on, [it's that] it's ok to be weird, it's not ok to be bullied. Together we can stop bullying. Join the movement, let's Act To Change."
Along with Lin, "30 Rock" actor Maulik Navin Pancholy is also stepping up to publicly support the White House campaign as a member of the President's Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. The Indian American entertainer explained the campaign on the White House website.
"The campaign website, ActToChange.org, includes video and music empowerment playlists, and encourages you to "Take a Pledge" to join the #ActToChange movement and stand up against bullying. As one out of three AAPIs does not speak English fluently, resources are available in Chinese, Hindi, Korean, Punjabi, Urdu, and Vietnamese," he wrote.
"'Act To Change' will also feature video testimonials of AAPI celebrity athletes, artists, and entertainers. The 'Act To Change' campaign builds a broad, diverse coalition of supporters and forges public-private partnerships across media platforms, and through nonprofit organizations, celebrities, and other stakeholders."
In closing, Pancholy wrote, "As we all know, bullying doesn't build character, it breaks confidence. Join me in the #ActToChange movement against bullying today."
