A Shane Hollander who somehow both upholds and dismantles the model minority mold - how I love you so
Okay I’m back (still avoiding my dissertation but fuck it)
Shane in canon is constantly and painfully aware of the responsibilities he has as a public figure that is then multiplied by his responsibility as an Asian-Canadian public figure that is visibly not exclusively white. Shane Hollander is generous, hyper competent, competitive to an insane degree, and is willing to give everything of his to the sport. He is in a white dominated sport that is known for its rampant discrimination and toxic “locker room” culture.
From the moment he decided to pursue hockey professionally, Shane was very aware that everything he did from that point was a performance.
Forget about his queerness or his (definite but still not canonly stated) autism for a second but simply from a racial perspective he was entering the profession at a disadvantage. He had to be the best one on the ice at all time not only because of his insane competitiveness but because as one of the only minorities on the ice at any given moment and ESPECIALLY as one of the only Asian players on the ice at any given moment he had to constantly prove himself.
No matter how far he got in his career his racial identity was always a point of conversation and a matter of difference.
He was good in spite of his race to the hockey world.
And the NHL constantly made him aware of this by holding him to a higher standard than other players. Because of his hard work/skill/ talent - Shane was “graciously” rewarded by being recognized long after he should have been. He was the top prospect pick, second draft pick, dominated world juniors and won gold and silver respectively two consecutive years, was the MVP for his juniors league and won rookie of the year after being drafted.
Shane Hollander was not only exemplary but he was the standard to be held to.
Because he had to be.
“He hated how serious he was. How earnest. He was everything the league wanted from their stars.” ILYA ROZANOV.
Professional hockey especially in the early 2000s would not have accepted a minority man if he was not the cream of the fucking crop. Shane is the model minority because he was the literal fucking standard. He was polite in interviews (because every word he said was scrutinized and inspected) , he was a by the book player that only played clean,
( because if he gave anyone a reason to doubt his playing they might take hockey away)
(he could not give anyone an excuse to doubt his ability because if Shane was not so unquestionably good then his entire career could be over in an instant)
shane was never in any scandals or appeared anything that perfectly put together everywhere he went
(Because the same league that crowned him captain within the first two-three years of his career would absolutely take it away from him if he was not perfectly composed at all times)
and above it all, he was a consistently achieving player - he earned the NHL far more than anyone expected and because of that he was constantly expected to continue to achieve to higher and higher standards
He is the model minority because Shane Hollander has never been anything less than exceptional, polite, and marketable. He doesn’t do anything about the racism he experiences in the league and to them that means he can “take a joke”. By never voicing anything than the RIGHT answer or opinion, he became the exception- the proof that the league wasn’t racist because this one in a generation player was a half Japanese man. He was digestible because he was as spectacular as he was inoffensive.
And yet, he’s constantly dominating the hockey world, Shane Hollander has never once allowed himself to be shrunken down on the ice and will never
He dismantles the entire mold they consistently try to force him into - he’s not soft- this is a grown adult man in a contact high power sport and he’s not above reminding people of that.
Shane Hollander is the antithesis of what racist white sport bros use to justify the racist culture that surrounds professional sports. Because he is not only hyper competent and capable but he’s also very traditionally masculine.
And that makes people burn because what can they say to criticize him?
He’s talented? He’s a masc gym bro? He’s not visibly emotional or emotionally vulnerable? He’s too good at his fucking job?
Shane Hollander is what ever drooling dumbass hockey he-man fan wishes he could be but can’t and because of this - they hate him for his excellence but love him for his success.
Shane is fully aware that if he does not preform to not only the highest level but higher he will be crucified at the first possible slip. (or trip which proved his worst and longest held fear- that if he was not being perfect then they would disregard him and they did)
