California officially honors Bruce Lee with his own day

The late Bruce Lee became a cultural icon.

Bruce Lee was much more than a martial artist. He was a cultural game changer and now his impact will get the recognition he deserves. California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill officially declaring May 17 as annual Bruce Lee Day, establishing the first-ever state namesake day dedicated to a Chinese American.

Lee’s daughter, Shannon, who is CEO of the San Francisco-based Bruce Lee Foundation, said the honor is a testament to her father’s enduring legacy as a bridge between cultures.

“From young people who found confidence and possibility in his philosophy, to families who finally saw themselves represented on screen, to athletes who still draw on his teachings of discipline and inner strength, his reach is profound,” Shannon Lee said in a statement.

Introduced by San Francisco Assemblymember Matt Haney, the measure isn’t just a nod to martial arts cinema — it’s an institutional recognition of an icon who fundamentally dismantled how Asian American men are viewed in this country.

“At a time when Asian Americans were too often absent from or stereotyped on screen, Bruce Lee helped generations see themselves represented with strength and dignity,” Haney said in a statement.

Bay Area roots

Born in 1940 to Chinese parents who were touring with an opera in San Francisco. Because of the birthright citizenship provision of the 14th Amendment, he was officially recognized as an American citizen. After the tour, his parents returned to Hong kong with their newborn son.

While the world claims Bruce Lee, the Bay Area holds his foundation. The selection of May 17 is intentionally tied to his return to California.

On May 17, 1959, an 18-year-old Lee stepped off a ship in San Francisco with just $100 in his pocket, fleeing a turbulent youth in Hong Kong. 

Oakland named an intersection near his
first studio after Bruce Lee.

Lee went to high school and the University of Washington  in Seattle where he met his future wife. He dropped out of UW to return to the Bay Area in 1964. Lee took root in the East Bay, opening his foundational Jun Fan Gung Fu institute on Broadway in Oakland, where he developed his revolutionary Jeet Kune Do philosophy.

Today, the Chinese Historical Society of America honors this footprint with its major exhibit in San Francisco's Chinatown, "We Are Bruce Lee: Under the Sky, One Family."

Dismantling the emasculated Asian male stereotype

For a over a century, Hollywood and American media weaponized a dual stereotype against Asian American men. They were either cast as the effeminate, quiet, and subservient caricatures designed to be laughed at, or as the diabolical, faceless "Yellow Peril" villains. Studio executives systematically stripped Asian men of agency, sensuality and leadership and this affected the way Asian men were viewed in the real world, in schools, in the board room, and the work place.

Bruce Lee shattered that framework. When Hollywood forced him to hide behind a mask as Kato in The Green Hornet and paid him a fraction of his white peers' salaries, he refused to stay marginalized.

By demanding the spotlight, Lee injected an unapologetic, fierce masculinity into the American consciousness. He was vocal, incredibly charismatic, fiercely intelligent, and physically unmatched. He forced western audiences to look at an Asian man not as a prop, but as a dominant, leading hero.

View from the edge

In a survey of American attitudes towards AAPI, hardly anyone could name the best known Asian America today. Even though he died in 1973, Bruce Lee is among the popular answers to that question. Decades after his death, Lee continues to be popular. 

The new law strongly encourages public schools to integrate Lee's life and cultural contributions into their lesson plans. Future generations won't just see him as a martial arts movie icon—they'll learn about his fierce advocacy for equal representation, his fight against Hollywood stereotyping, and his demands for racial tolerance.

At a time when our community continues to fight visibility battles and combat systemic bias, remembering a pioneer who refused to bow to Hollywood's racist boxes is a necessary blueprint.

A day making his story an official part of California's story cements his place in popular culture and in a quiet way, helped shape the development of Asian Americana. It ensures his lessons on overcoming institutional barriers remain highly relevant for the struggles of tomorrow.

This is how we anchor our stories into the center of American history, ensuring we are never treated as footnotes again.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news, views and chismis from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X, BlueSky or at the blog Views From the Edge. If you find this perspective interesting, please repost.

Bruce Lee's stamp on America is official, says US Postal Service

In his too brief life, martial artist and movie star  Bruce Lee had a huge stamp on the lives of Asian men and now you can put his stamp on your mail.

In a move that feels like it’s been decades in the making, the United States Postal Service officially inducted Bruce Lee into its permanent collection this week. At a packed ceremony at Seattle’s historic Nippon Kan Theater—just a stone's throw from where Lee first began teaching his philosophy of "being like water"—the USPS unveiled the 2026 Forever Stamp.

More than just an action star

For the Asian American community, this isn't just about a movie star. It’s about visibility. As Views From the Edge has tracked for years, the fight for representation in media started with the trail Lee blazed in the 1960s and 1970s.

“Bruce Lee was mesmerizing to watch. Unlike the theatrical, acrobatic kung fu that came before, his movements were economical, explosive and real,” said Ben Kuo, the Postal Service’s senior vice president of facilities and infrastructure, who spoke at the ceremony.

Bruce Lee fundamentally shifted the perception of Asian men by replacing decades of demeaning caricatures with an image of physical power, sexual charisma, and defiant agency.

"He wasn't just a martial artist; he was a philosopher who forced the world to look at an Asian man as a hero, a leader, and a human being," said one attendee at the Seattle launch.

Before Lee's rise in the early 1970s, Asian men in Western media were typically relegated to "emasculated" roles such as bumbling servants, desexualized "nerds," or villainous "Fu Manchu" archetypes.

FYI: The Bruce Lee Forever® stamp, released on February 18, 2026, can be purchased for $15.60 per sheet of 20 through the USPS Postal Store website, by calling 844-737-7826, or at local post offices nationwide. The commemorative stamp is also available via the USPS Officially Licensed Collection on Amazon.

The design

The stamp itself, designed by Kam Mak, captures that kinetic energy we all remember. Its aThe Look: A black-and-white tempera painting of Lee mid-air in his signature flying kick. The background features a bold yellow brushstroke, a nod to the jumpsuit that became a global symbol of defiance in Game of Death.

In a clever bit of typography, the words "BRUCE LEE" appear to be shattering under the force of his kick..

It was only fitting that the launch happened in the Pacific Northwest. Seattle is where Lee found his personal and martial arts footing, met his wife Linda, and where he now rests at Lake View Cemetery.

His daughter, Shannon Lee, was on hand to remind the crowd that her father’s legacy wasn't just about the "fists of fury," but about the mental strength required to break through the racial "bamboo ceilings" of 1960s Hollywood.

Enter Bruce Lee

He first entered America's concsiousness in the one-season Green Hornet TV series where he played Kato, the loyal sidekick. While the show was not good enough for another season, Lee's prowess as a martial artist stole every fight scene from the Green Hornet and introduced a new Asian man to America.

In breaking old stereotypes, Bruce Lee created another: the iconic martial artist.

Unfortunately, Hollywood didn't catch on to the significance of Lee's popularity with the younger generation. He still found the major studio doors closed to the concept of an Asian being a leading man.

That's why he left Hollywood for Hong Kong where his martial arts movies -- Game of Death, The Big Boss, The Way of the Dragon and Fists of Fury -- were wildly popular. Of course, the success of those films led to a collaboration with Warner Brothers to produce Enter the Dragon, the movie that reintroduced the martial artist icon to American audiences and legions of new fans that kicked off a surge of martial art studios' openings.

Bruce Lee fundamentally shifted the perception of Asian men by replacing decades of demeaning caricatures with an image of physical power, sexual charisma, and defiant agency.

        RELATED: 'Warrior' is an ode to Bruce Lee & my 'Kung Fu' audition 

Before Lee's rise in the early 1970s, Asian men in Western media were typically relegated to "emasculated" roles such as bumbling servants, desexualized "nerds," or villainous "Fu Manchu" archetypes.

Ironically, while he broke old stereotypes, his success inadvertently created a new one: the expectation that every Asian man in film must be a martial arts expert, a typecasting that actors like Jackie Chan and Jet Li later had to navigate.

Today, Lee remains an enduring icon of pride and strength, particularly cited as a source of resilience for Asian American communities during times of social challenge.

“I think it’s great for him to be recognized by the US Postal Service because a lot of people don’t realize that he was American,” says Shannon Lee. “America really shaped him and in return, he helped shape America.”

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news, views and chismis from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X, BlueSky or at the blog Views From the Edge. 

Shohei Ohtani is reaching Bruce Lee status

Shohei Ohtani pitches and homers for the L.A. Dodgers win against the Milwaukee Brewers.

As a long-time fan of the San Francisco Giants, it pains me to admit this: Shohei Ohtani is the greatest baseball player of all time. It's just too bad  he plays for the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Giants' bitter rival, 

The Japanese-born Ohtani's Game 4 performance Oct. 15 was described by Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, a Japanese American, as "the greatest postseason performance of all time,"

Shohei Ohtani led the Los Angeles Dodgers to the 2024 National League pennant with a historic two-way performance in the clinching Game 4 of the NLCS against the Milwaukee Brewers.

In the National League pennant-clinching 5-1 victory, Ohtani performed masterfully both at the plate and on the mound, a performance that had even Giants' fans in awe.

Not only did he throw six scoreless innings, allowing only two hits and striking out 10 batters to earn the win; he also hit three home runs, becoming the first player in major league history to hit three homers and pitch in the same postseason game.

        RELATED: Shohei Ohtani, the new face of baseball

So has Shohei Ohtani reached Bruce Lee status? It's not a crazy idea, but it's a hell of a conversation starter. You have one guy, a martial arts legend, and another, a baseball phenom, both redefining what it means to be a powerful Asian man in America.

The thing is, it's not a one-to-one comparison. It’s about two different moments in time. Bruce Lee had to fight his way in, literally. He had to be explosive, loud, and confident on a very different stage—the movies. He was breaking down doors that were firmly locked. His masculinity was a raw, defiant force, and it was exactly what was needed back then.

Ohtani, on the other hand, comes from a different angle. He's not in-your-face, but his quiet domination is just as powerful. Standing 6’4”, he’s an athletic force of nature, a giant in America's pastime. He doesn’t need to swagger. His talent does all the talking. And for a whole new generation, that quiet excellence is the new loud. It's a different kind of strength, earned in the mainstream without the same kind of defiant attitude Lee had to embody.

Another difference is Lee excelled in the exotic martial arts originating in Asia. He did it so well that he created a new stereotype that if you are Asian you must know martial arts.

Lee challenged the long-held Hollywood stereotype of Asian men as weak, submissive servants or villains by showcasing his incredible martial arts skills and physical prowess.

In contrast, Ohtani is dominating in baseball, America's Pasttime. It's not like he is the first ballplayer of Asian origin to play the sport in the major league but the 6'4" Ohtani's three homers was a historic display of power. One of the home runs he blasted Friday went sailing over the outfield bleachers and out of the park.

On top of that, in the six innings that he pitched, he struck out 10. He faced only 22 batters and held the Brewers scoreless. Dominant. Astounding.

It shows how far we’ve come. From a time when we had to rely on a martial artist to smash stereotypes, to now, where a humble, two-way baseball star can do the same just by being the best at what he does. The foundation Lee laid for Asian masculinity is still there, but Ohtani is building a different kind of structure on top of it. One that is less about being an exception and more about being the standard.

Asians and Asian Americans say that Ohtani may be giving them a new narrative.

Evan-Thomas May and Zeph Wong wrote about their lifelong obsession with baseball–starting with Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners – and how Ohtani has solidified it:

“So when I watch the MLB roll an Ohtani commercial, or hear the taiko drums boom as I load my game, Shotime’s prominence feels like so much more than just marketing. Seeing him is a representation of my own identity, my own community, and all those who have afforded me the life I have today.”

Bruce Lee's status as a stereotype-buster is undeniable. I'm one of those kids who saw Lee as a hero and a beneficiary of his tough-guy image in Hollywood  of taking no guff from anybody with the philosophic lessons of a genuine sifu. 

Ohtani is breaking ground in the statistic-loving world of major league baseball where every at-bat, every pitch, every stolen base is documented and can't be debated. On top of his 50 home runs, 50 steals season last year, his latest performance cements his other-worldly status in sports

Except when the Dodgers play the Giants, I'll admit that every time Ohtani hits a homer, steals a base, or pitches a strike-out, I'm secretly cheering for him.

Ohtani may not be aware of what he's doing for Asian Americans -- at least he has not made any public statements on that subject. For every Asian kid who is overlooked in sports or picked last for a team because we're not supposed to excel in physical endeavors: We're told we're too small, not fast enough, not strong enough, not driven enough; stick to academe, become a lawyer or doctor, we're told. In this era, we are witnessing the  resurgence of white supremacy and the rise in anti-Asian attacks and rhetoric, Ohtani is breaking that stereotype.

And he's not done yet. The 31-year old Ohtani told TIME magazine that his best is “yet to come.”

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news, views and chismis from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X, BlueSky or at the blog Views From the Edge. 

'Interior Chinatown' author Charles Yu wins National Book Award; popes at Asian male stereotype

Charles Yu dressed up for the virtual awards announcement.

Just about every Asian American male has had to contend with the stereotype imposed on Asian American men and boys by American society.

Charles Yu has taken the hurt and anguish caused by the Asian Male Stereotype (AMS), and laughed at it, thereby taking away its power of shame and self-hatred. Along the way, the author won the National Book Award for fiction for his novel "Interior Chinatown."

His satiric novel, written in the form of a screenplay, (hence, the title) tackles the ASM in all its forms -- the nerd, the techie, the second banana, the asexual object of derision. and put them together in his award-winning book.

In this year's coronavirus-affected virtual ceremony, Yu was clearly taken by surprise and admitted he was so sure he wasn't going to win that he didn't prepare any remarks when his name was announced.

“I can’t feel anything in my body right now,” Yu said during his acceptance speech. “I’m going to go melt into a puddle right now.” 

“By turns hilarious and flat-out heartbreaking, Charles Yu’s ‘Interior Chinatown’ is a bright, bold, gut punch of a novel,” the judges said.

The novel's protagonist, Willis Wu doesn’t perceive himself as a leading man, even in his own life: He’s merely Generic Asian man. Sometimes he gets to be Background Oriental Making a Weird Face or even Disgraced Son, but he is always relegated to a prop. Yet every day he leaves his tiny room in a Chinatown SRO and enters the Golden Palace restaurant, where Black and White, a procedural cop show, is in perpetual production. He’s a bit player here, too, but he dreams of being Kung Fu Guy—the most respected role that anyone who looks like him can attain. At least that’s what he has been told, time and time again. Except by one person, his mother. Who says to him: Be more.

Although, trained as a lawyer, the Taiwan-born Yu doesn't see himself as a writer even though this is not the first time his writing has brought him attention.

Yu is the author of three books, including the novel How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe (a New York Times Notable Book and a Time magazine best book of the year). He was a National Book Foundation 5 Under 35 honoree, and was nominated for two Writers Guild of America Awards for his work on the HBO series, Westworld. He has also written for shows on FX, AMC, and HBO. His fiction and nonfiction have appeared in The New Yorker, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Wired, among other publications.

The National Book Award, which dates back to 1950, is one of the most prestigious literary prizes in the world and has been given to literary icons like W.H. Auden, Saul Bellow, Ralph Ellison, William Faulkner and Flannery O’Connor, reports the New York Times.

Last month, Hulu announced the streaming network will turn Interior Chinatown into a series.

Yu himself will produce the series too, with executive producers Dan Lin, Lindsey Liberatore and Elsie Choi for Rideback, and Miura Kite for Participant.

Besides Wu, the National Book Award judges awarded the prize for translated literature went to Yu Miri’s novel “Tokyo Ueno Station,” which was translated from Japanese by Morgan Giles, and is narrated by a ghost who visits a park where he lived when he was homeless.

A real-life Indiana Jones is Asian American

NATGEO

Explorer and TV host Albert Lin shows another side of the Asian American male.

From the suave Henry Golding (Crazy Rich Asians, Last Christmas) to the kick-ass Daniel Wu (Into the Badlands), the dramatic accolades showered on Darren Criss (The Assassination of Gianni Versace) to the persistence of presidential candidate Andrew Yang, the centuries-old Asian male stereotype is starting to show signs of melting away.

Now comes the adventurer, explorer, man of action, the Asian American Indiana Jones: University of California San Diego technologist Albert Lin.

If you haven't caught an episode of Lost Cities, you can still catch up on the National Geographic TV network which began broadcasing the a six-part series in which Lin uses the latest technology to explore antiquities, from the Lost Kingdom of the Pacific in Micronesia to the Knights Templar in Israel.

National Geographic TV began broadcasting Lost Cities, which premiered Oct. 28, a six-part series in which scientists use the latest technology to explore antiquities, from the Lost Kingdom of the Pacific in Micronesia to the Knights Templar in Israel.

The start of Dr. Albert Lin’s journey to becoming an explorer began at the end of his Ph.D. program in engineering, when he realized that he was wrong about something.

“My assumption that the age of discovery was in the past is totally wrong,” he told the San Diego Union-Tribune. “As engineers, we can use technology to look in completely new ways. We are—if we decide to [do that]—in the new age of discovery.” So Lin did what you’d expect: “I sold everything I had. I moved into my car. I gave myself a year to raise money to try to do the most audacious thing I could think of.”

That audacious thing was trying to find a nearly 800-year-old grave. “I decided to try to use satellites, drones, radar systems, crowdsource data analytics, all these other things to try to find the tomb of Genghis Khan in Mongolia. And I just said I was going to do it.”

He convinced National Geographic to fund his project. Though he never found the tomb, the adventure led to other projects like the latest, Lost Cities.

NATGEO

Andrew Lin scales a steep mountainside on his latest project, 'Lost Cities.'

The documentary series, which has a special premiere Sunday at 10 p.m. ET before continuing Monday in its regular timeslot, follows Lin as he works with archaeologists “to uncover and resolve mysteries of the past in the most extraordinary sites of antiquity, including the Knights Templar in Israel, the Lost Kingdom of the Pacific in Micronesia and the city behind the legend of El Dorado: City of Gold in Colombia,” according to the network’s description of the show.

Lin said that, unlike other adventure or discovery series where a host just parachutes in to talk about things that have already happened, “We actually make real discoveries on this series. There’s real things that have been found that were never seen before,” he said.

“There are genuine new cities that we found out in the most remote places that no archeologist has stepped foot on for thousands of years. They haven’t been looted.”

A lot of Lin’s work involves LIDAR, a “laser range finder” which he described with an example: “You can fly over a canopy of jungle and you can get a sense” of what’s beneath it, on the forest floor.

While only “about six percent of the laser hits the ground, he said, “digitally you can delete the trees and you’re left with this naked map of the forest floor. And it’s really cutting edge stuff for archeology.”

The result, Lin said, is “essentially a treasure map in our hands.” And that’s what the six episodes of Lost Cities (NatGeo, Mondays at 9) are essentially focused on.

In 2016, Lin’s right leg was severely damaged in an off-road vehicle accident. Bones were broken and splintered, like pieces of bamboo.

Doctors amputated Lin’s leg from the knee down in hopes of alleviating excruciating pain. He was fitted with a prosthetic limb, which hasn't slowed him down a bit. Since then, he's films several projects surfing, trekking through jungles, scuba diving and climbing mountains on his artificial limb.

After shooting the final scene of Lost Cities, Lin wrote on Instagram, “It’s been the expedition of a lifetime… chasing stories of our shared humanity, of our human journey. It has been one of the greatest honors of my life putting together this new TV series. I had no idea it would be so emotional, but when you know you're finishing something that has truly transformed you it can bring tears.”

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OPINION: Andrew Yang shatters the Asian male stereotype while breaking down in tears

SCREEN CAPTURE / CNN

Andrew Yang got all choked up in a town hall about gun violence.

Presidential candidate Andrew Yang broke down in tears Saturday (Aug. 10) while discussing gun violence during a town hall in Des Moines, Iowa.

The unexpected display of genuine emotion, something we don't attach to the traditional American definition of what makes a man a man where stocism prevails, is just another example of how Yang is breaking the mold.

Say what you will about businessman Yang's chances of winning the Democratic nomination for POTUS, but in his own way he's helping change the image of the much-maligned Asian American male.

During the past year since he announced his intention to run for the highest office in the land, he has handled himself well in the public limelight.

If you are one of those people who hear Yang speak about his initiatives -- especially the Freedom Dividend that gives everyone in the country over the age of 18 $1000 a month -- and you're surprised at his confidence and articulateness and his ability to brush off racial slights or attempts to fluster him -- then you've fallen into the trap of the Asian American Male Stereotype Syndrome.

Don't feel guilty about that. You're not alone.

That trap is something that has been centuries in the making in an effort to dehumanize and emasculate the Asian male and turn him into something less than human and less threatening.

People expect him to be inarticulate, speak with an accent, to be submissive and unemotional.

During the Everytown Gun Safety Town Hall in Iowa, Yang was asked a question by a woman named Stephanie about preventing unintentional shootings by children.
Stephanie said she lost her 4-year-old daughter Dayla when she was struck and killed by a stray bullet in March 2011. Her son, Dayla's twin, witnessed it.

"As President, how would you address unintentional shootings by children?" she asked.

When Stephanie finished her question, Yang went to Stephanie to give her a hug. As he came back up on stage, Yang said, "I have a six- and three-year-old boy, and I was imagining ..." before getting too choked up to continue.

As shown in a CNN clip, he fought back tears for several seconds, he added, "I was imagining it was one of them that got shot and the other saw," before breaking down into tears again and telling Stephanie, "I'm so sorry."

Andrew Yang starts at the 2:10 mark.

Television hosts who make fun of his campaign or some of his unorthodox policies are often surprised that what Yang's proposals might at-first, sound outlandish, but they kind of make sense. 

The devil is in the details. We haven't heard him fully explain what he plans to do about climate change, provide affordable health care or what he'd do with North Korea, Iran or how to avoid a military confrontation with China in the Philippine Sea or between two US allies, Pakistan and India.

I harbor no delusions that Yang could ever capture the Democratic nomination for POTUS, but I can't help but that that he's looked at the stereotype in the eye and simply ignores everybody's expectations and assumptions -- from Stephen Colbert to Rachel Maddow to Fox News.

From his choice not to wear a tie during the nationally televised debates to his dry, almost sarcastic sense of humor as he aikido-like turn questions meant to fluster him back into answers his questioner unable to refute with facts. His proposals on workforce development, robotics, innovation and the future (not the past) make him a favorite of the Silicon Valley set.

Now he's qualified for the third (and almost certainly, the fourth) Democratic debate, again surprising political pundits who never expected his outsider campaign to last this long and fare better in the polls than some of the supposedly seasoned and better known governors and senators running for the same office. 

With a campaign infrastructure that is barebones at best, expectations are not high for him to last until the Democratic convention next summer. But, he appears to be at his best when he's underestimated.

Besides, everybody loves the underdog ... especiallly if he shows his vulnerability. 

After he struggled with his emotion on that Iowa stage, the audience, who will be the first to vote in the primaries next February, broke into applause in support of Yang's honest, human display of emotion.

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Houston Rockets GM confirms what we already knew re: Jeremy Lin

Opinion

As an Asian American man, I can relate to Jeremy Lin, who at one point was the only Asian American player in the National Basketball Association.

No, I couldn't dunk or execute a pick and roll. My game was journalism. Except for my time at the San Francisco-based Philippine News and at the Bob Maynard-owned Oakland Tribune, I was often the only Asian American in the newsroom.

As I worked my way up the food chain, eventually becoming an editorial writer, I wa able to influence news coverage - especially when it came to covering minority communities. I know if I wasn't there, if I hadn't spoken up, if I hadn't assigned an angle to a story, those stories and perspectives would never have been written.

So, it wasn't surprising to hear an NBA executive admit what Asian Americans already knew -- Lin was often overlooked and underappreciated because he was of Asian descent.

The Houston Rockets and general manager Daryl Morey already had a good idea of what Jeremy Lin was capable of before Lin entered the 2010 NBA draft after starring on the Harvard basketball team.

Morey opened up about their scouting report on Lin on Michael Lewis’ 2016 book titled “The Undoing Project.” On the book, Morey claimed their model told them that Lin belongs in the top 15 of the draft. However, during this time, Morey still didn’t trust their model completely and passed on him, via Reddit (u/shoot_your_shot).

Here’s an excerpt from Lewis' book on Morey's evaluation of Lin:

“He lit up our model,” said Morey. “Our model said take him with, like, the 15th pick in the draft.” The objective measurement of Jeremy Lin didn’t square with what the experts saw when they watched him play; a not terribly athletic Asian kid. Morey hadn’t completely trusted his model - and so had chickened out and not drafted Lin. 

A year after the Houston Rockets failed to draft Jeremy Lin, they began to measure the speed of a player’s first two steps: Jeremy Lin had the quickest first move of any player measured. He was explosive and was able to change direction far more quickly than most NBA players. 

“He’s incredibly athletic,” said Morey. “But the reality is that every **** person, including me, thought he was unathletic. And I can’t think of any reason for it other than he was Asian.”

To his credit, Lin accepted the unasked for role of "representing" Asian Americans and often spoke out about the racial slights he experiences in the league and civil rights abuses that have grown in the US.

In a sense, Lin suffered as the "model minority" in a sport dominated by African American athletes. He was a "smart" "team-first" player; he wasn't athletic enough, fast enough or tough enough; he was seen as a novelty whose position was "given" to him, not an athlete who "earned" his accolades.

"And still, Lin’s stats have been healthier than most would guess," writes Kyle Wagner for the Daily News. "In his healthy seasons, he shoots around 60 percent at the rim, and his true shooting percentage — the gold standard for an “efficient” player — has flirted with very good to elite levels. He has been an undeniably useful guard."

Over the weekend, sadly told a church audience in Taiwan, “Free agency has been tough because I feel like in some ways the NBA has kind of given up on me.” 

That's too bad. Lin is not a great player, but he's a good player and at 30 years of age, better than many other guards who have signed multi-million dollar contracts.

Linsanity is a distant memory, but Lin's story chipped away at old stereotypes and biases that Morey's admission proves are difficult to undo -- and, we're not talking just about the NBA.

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Realtor fired for racist post about BTS

ASAM NEWS

Highline Residential which describes itself as New York’s top real estate firm has fired one of its agents following a racist tweet about BTS and Asian men.
Koreaboo reports the agent tweeted about BTS after their Saturday Night Live performance. “They look like kids. How old are they? Are Asian women even attracted to their own men?” the tweet declared.

BTS fans, who call themselves ARMY got on social media and were able to identify the agent as Brian Hughes, which Highline Residential confirmed after it announced Hughes’ relationship with the company had been terminated.

Hughes' Twitter account has since been made private.

The social media outcry reached Highline Residential owners, who responded, thusly:

Some criticized the backlash saying Hughes should not have been outed and that a warning would have been enough.

Twitter user Shang Ho, who was among those who lead the backlash, said Hughes had only himself to blame. 

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Groundbreaking 'Crazy Ex-Girlfriend' has series finale tonight

ASAM NEWS

One of the most creative shows on broadcast television and groundbreaking shows for Asian Americans is coming to an end tonight (April 5) after four seasons.
The series finale of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend airs tonight on The CW. Starring Rachel Bloom as the neurotic Rebecca Bunch and Vincent Rodriguez III as Josh Chan (Rebecca’s man crush and ex-boyfriend) the show is notable for being a television rom-com with singing and dancing thrown in for good measure.

It’s also stands out for casting an Asian American as a romantic lead several years before Crazy Rich Asians broke ground for the same thing on the big screen. Entertainment Tonight called Rodriguez III the first Filipino lead on American television. It’s a distinction the actor does not take lightly.

“It’s meant a great deal to me, especially since my dad didn’t want me to do this,” he said to ET.

Groundbreaking moments on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

• Why you should watch Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
• CEG introduces TV's first Filipino American family
• Why TV needs more 'Asian bro's'
• 'The Kiss' finally occurs on CEG
• A Filipino American Thanksgiving depicted on TV

“He wanted me to be a businessman. He wanted me to follow in his footsteps, to be who he wanted me to be so he wouldn’t have to worry and could have someone carry on his name and business, but I didn’t want to do that. I knew I was gay at a very young age. I was bi first and I’ve always appreciated women, but I realized at a point that I’m really attracted to men and I’m probably going to marry a guy.”

He married his husband, Greg Wright during the first week of filming the first season.

While the show never achieved strong ratings, it generated a loyal following. Its cast has even toured the country in concert.

Paste Magazine this week published a tribute to the program, 10 Ways Crazy Ex-Girlfriend changed TV.

Two of the notables to make the list were rethinking the male romantic lead and fighting for equal representation.

Taping the last episode hit Rodriguez III hard.

“It was very, very, very emotional. It’s a few layers: Us as actors saying goodbye to these characters that we’re going to miss, us as people saying goodbye to getting to play and be together on set, and also saying goodbye to each other as these characters, which is its own powerful and resonant force,” Rodriguez III told ET. ” I have my own mourning to go through as Vinny saying goodbye to Josh.”

Crazy Ex-Girlfriend airs tonight at 8 p.m/7 Central on The CW.

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Louis C.K. disses Asian men in new 'comedy' monologue

YOUTUBE

Comedian Louie C.K. is trying to come back from his admitted sexual misconduct.

(Content Warning: Vulgar language used by the comedian is quoted in this story)

By Louis Chan

ASAM ENWS

Louis C.K. is getting a lot of negative media for his routine which goes after survivors of the Parkland High School shooting in Florida, which left 17 dead.
Getting less attention is the part of C.K.’s stand up when he pokes fun of the genitals of Asian men. You know, the tired penis joke that has been done again, and again and again. It’s what old outdated comedians fall back on when they lack any original material.

“Why do black guys have big dicks?”…“Asians have small dicks … because they’re women,” C.K. is quoted as saying as saying by BuzzFeedNews on stage at a Levittown, New York Comedy Club.

“You know why Asian guys have small dicks. ’Cause they’re women. They’re not dudes. They’re all women. All Asians are women. And they have big clits, really big clits, and when they have sex they just stick their clits in each other’s pussies and then they procreate using math,” he said.

The jokes came to light when a 48 minute audio recording of the set appeared on You Tube just two days ago.

The comedian is on the comeback trail after he admitted to several instances of sexual misconduct towards women who made his assaults public.

Among those who have condemned C.K. for his new routine is social media star Eugene Lee Yang.

Every time a comedian like Louis C.K. makes jokes about Asian men, I have to stop having amazing sex with my penis in order to try and count the number of times I’ve heard that tired stand-up before, but I can’t because I suck at math. pic.twitter.com/8KZSurz9Wi
— Eugene Lee Yang (@EugeneLeeYang) January 1, 2019

Reaction has been overwhelmingly positive to Yang’s comment.

It’s so strange to see a dude most women are afraid to be in a room alone with joke about other dudes being bad at sex. How lacking in self awareness must he be— tanya (@tanyatlh) January 1, 2019

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On Henry Golding: Did you see me on the cover of GQ?

I THINK that headline is what's known as clickbait. My apologies.

No, that isn't me on the GQ magazine cover. If you don't know the actor by now-- let me introduce you to Henry Golding. He's only been acting for a year or so.

But ... in the context of Asian American, or Filipino American, or Southeast Asian American cultural history, the image is pretty damn close.

Those eyes, those lips, that nose, that skin color, that hair (when I had hair) ! Oh, don't get me wrong. I'm nowhere near as handsome the breakout star of Crazy Rich Asians, but Golding landing on the GQ cover, arguably the fashion arbitrator for men (so it claims) is good enough for me say he (kinda) looks like me.

He's the first Asian man the editors of the men's fashion magazine to be granted the cover.

“When Crazy Rich Asians hit theaters this summer, Hollywood held its breath waiting for the box office results, but anyone who knew anything about ... well, anything, could’ve predicted it’d be the smash it was,” wrote GQ. “Beyond its success — and what a success it was — it minted Henry Golding as one of the industry’s must-hire new actors, and for good reason: He’s handsome, he’s suave, and that accent. A nation swooned, and GQ did too.”
Except for an occasional Bruce Lee on the cover of the esoteric Black Belt magazine, growing up in the U.S., I hardly ever saw someone who looks like me on U.S. magazines, movie posters or on the silver screen. When it came to role models, I had to search long and hard to find them because the standards of beauty, power and being outstanding were so overwhelmingly Eurocentric. Editors, who were also white abd who make those media decisions, couldn't bring themselves to not cater to what they thought their readership wanted to see.

Hopefully, this isn't a one-shot event. Hopefully, other Asian men will be the cover images in more magazines; hopefully there will be other actors, sports heroes,;entertainers, politicians doctors, lawyers, social activists who will overcome those ingreained biases.

What happens when people who look like you are practically invisible in society? I think you know. Questions of self-worth, self-loathing, identity can sometimes overcome you, crippling you into adulthood.

In the big scheme of life, Golding's accomplishment isn't going to cure cancer, stop war, bring harmony to the world, but we shouldn't downplay what it means, too.

With Golding's breakthrough, I can imagine some Asian American kid, won't have to wait so long to see someone who looks like him or her on a magazine cover. That kid might think that he's (or she) is part of this country, that his brown skin, almond eyes and full lips are attractive enough to get on a cover. That kid might say, "Hey, he looks like me."
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