The Little Mariachi finds a new racial culture in American sports

The youngster who created a national uproar last year singing the national anthem at an NBA game was back in the American spotlight but without the apparent racism controversy or luck that he had previously brought the San Antonio Spurs.

SEE ALSO: Marc Anthony sings the national anthem and sparks a racist frenzy

Twelve-year-old Sebastien De La Cruz, “El Charro de Oro,” performed the Star Spangled Banner at the nationally televised Game 2 of the NBA championship series Sunday but the much feared vitriolic onslaught on social media did not develop – and the Spurs lost to the Miami Heat, 98-96.

And you have to wonder: Has the racist culture in America been muffled from what it was only a year ago? And, if so, what brought this about?

Twitter and Facebook appeared to be dramatically quieter about the Little Mariachi than last year when there was outcry at the idea of anyone dressed as a Mexican charro singing the American national anthem.

But on Sunday night, it was as if the outrage over racist tweets that overwhelmed the actual racism last year had silenced the critics.

That or there was some serious editing of racist banter on social media.

More likely, though, it might be fair to ask how much has the racism among sports fans been tempered by the Donald Sterling controversy of recent weeks in which the league went on record condemning not only racism but insisting it cannot be a part of the NBA  — forcing the sale of the team out of the hands of a proven racist.

If the league can go hard and fearlessly against a billionaire like the soon-to-be-former owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, imagine what it can do against a racist regular Joe. Banish him from games? Deny him season tickets? Post his identity on the NBA site?

There is also the changing racial culture of Texas to consider.

At the end of last season, the University of Texas replaced its football coach in a historic move – hiring the first black head coach in the program’s long history, former Louisville Coach Charlie Strong

The hiring was criticized by longtime UT benefactor Red McCombs, a San Antonio billionaire and co-founder of Clear Channel Communications, who said Strong was no better than an offensive or defensive coordinator.

A few days later, McCombs changed his tune and embraced the hiring of a black head coach. An onslaught of Texans had gotten to McCombs and convinced him this was a new day and a new age.

“We have our first African American head football coach, and the fanfare is about his ability, not his skin color,” Dallas businessman Robert Pharr, a University of Texas alumnus, told Voxxi.com.

“From Dallas to San Antonio, Texas is getting pretty cosmopolitan. If you go to deep East Texas you’ll find remnants of the Confederacy, but most Texans have rejected that culture.”

The story of the Little Mariachi certainly suggests as much. There were numerous social media posts in recent days urging that he be brought back to sing the national anthem.

And a sampling of Twitter over night indicates little resembling last year’s hatred.

Nicolette Good ?@nicolettegood

Sebastien de la Cruz can silence an entire bar by singing the national anthem. #gospursgo

Illinois Tracker ?@Iltracker2

MikePuenteNews: Sebastien De La Cruz is one awesome kid.  Spurs.

Jonathan Muñoz ?@JonathanMunozTV

So glad they brought back Sebastien De La Cruz! Last year his natl anthem performance was met with racist tweets. Shame on people.

Norman Chad @NormanChad

If Sebastien De La Cruz sang the National Anthem every morning, I’d move to San Antonio.

For it is now clear: Young Sebastien De La Cruz is as American as his critics, if not more so.

He is a Mexican-American born in San Antonio.

“They don’t know my life,” he has told reporters about his critics. “My father was actually in the Navy for a really long time… People don’t know, they just assume that I’m just Mexican. But I’m not from Mexico. I’m from San Antonio born and raised, a true San Antonio Spurs fan.”

SEE ALSO: Sebastien de la Cruz attempts to break a world record