Laurie Hernandez Quotes

Bruce Lee was the first star I idolized. Growing up as a Chinese American, there weren't many people like me on the big screen.

It means the world to me to represent the Hispanic community.

I feel I'll take on the responsibility of showing the world a whole different kind of Latin woman.

I'm proud of my background, so I hope there will be more roles where Hispanics are being portrayed.

As the first Hispanic female governor in history, little girls often come up to me in the grocery store or the mall. They look and point, and when they get the courage, they ask 'Are you Susana?' and they run up and give me a hug.

No, I've heard over the years that it's nice for them to see somebody who's like, you know, a well-known successful musician who's Asian. I've heard it from a few musicians, too.

I know I'm representing the Library of Congress, all the people of the United States and, of course, the Latinos and Latinas as well.

For years, I looked to Bruce Lee as a mentor as being a Chinese and Asian man living in this country.

I am very proud to be a Latina, because that's also something that makes me very unique.

If everyone in your class has heroes, and they can relate to them in textbooks and literature, and then you don't see any of your heritage there, you feel less than. And I always wanted to be able to make Latin kids like myself feel more than.

You hold everybody that's Polynesian or Samoan on your shoulders. You want to do your best to represent that in the best way that you can.

I'm glad to be partnered with Orgullosa because I feel that now that I'm able to win a gold medal at the Olympics, win a silver medal, I feel little girls will be able to look up to me, and Hispanics will kind of rise a little more.

Growing up in my mother's Pueblo household, I never imagined a world in which I would be represented by someone who looked like me.

My heritage is really important to me. I've always had that olive complexion and the squished nose, and I just think it's important to do the best I can to be a good role model.

I want to be a positive role model, especially for kids and Aboriginal people... When people see me, often all they see is another Australian athlete having a go. It isn't until they see the full Cathy Freeman picture that they realise how proud I am of my ancestry and heritage. I'd like a little more tolerance and acceptance of my culture and all the differing cultures that make up Australia.

I'd love to be a role model for black kids, whether they play hockey or not.

I was always a wrestling fan, and being an Arab kid who grew up in Canada, there was no representation for people like me.

Kunta Kinte is the closest thing I've ever seen... to a superhero. He's amazing. He's inspirational.

I went to a private girls' school where I was one out of five girls in the class who looked like me.

When I saw Neneh Cherry singing on TV, I was so glad that there was someone of the same ethnicity - and with the same curly hair - for me to look up to.

Representing young black girls and giving them hope and the light and letting them know that they can do anything is important to me as a little black girl, too.

In fiction you're not often writing about the typical; you are interested in outliers, the points of interest. Part of it comes from feeling I was the only Asian or person of colour... another part comes from my personality: I'm an introvert, and my usual survival mode in a large group is to stand by a wall and watch everybody.

I never thought of myself as a role model, but I've had so many messages from girls, women, mothers saying I was an inspiration.

For me, the best part of being Latina in the WWE is the feistiness I can bring to the ring.

If I were to have seen more people that looked like me - because I'm Palestinian and Lebanese - and talked like me and acted like me, I probably would have had a lot more hope knowing that I wasn't alone. I really hope that this show, 'Champions,' gives that to people.