The representation of black families or black people, in general, has improved a lot in the past couple of years. Usually, African Americans are stereotyped as thugs, classless, living in poverty, uneducated, ghetto and more. There were shows far and between that actually showcased African American families and people in a good light or portrayed an accurate reality of what the black family goes through. Those shows became our holy grail; The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, The Cosby Show, A Different World, Everybody Hates Chris, One on One, and Girlfriends to name a few.
These shows made us proud and inspired black families and children all over the world that could finally relate to someone that looked like them on television. Who didn’t want a family like the Cosby’s? And I’m pretty sure A Different World made everyone want to go to an HBCU (Historically Black College/University).
These shows also held nothing back on topics that hit home every day in the African American community, such as racism, feminism, STDs and the stigmas that go along with them, building family values, education, and estranged families. They broke the stereotype that is placed upon Black families and people in the media.
After those shows ended, we went back to square one of being misrepresented. Recently though, there have been a lot of TV shows pushing the culture and showing black people are and can be great. In these new shows, there are prominent African American figures who created, wrote or directed the very series that they are starring in such as Atlanta FX, a Drama-comedy. This show stars Donald Glover as Earnest Marks, a Princeton dropout turned manager who is trying to get his cousin’s rap career off the ground. Another is Issa Rae in HBO series Insecure. In fact, Rae is the first black woman to create and star in her own premium cable show.
Then we have the creator of Luke Cage, Cheo Hodari Coker, showcasing Luke Cage as a black superhero who faces a lot of common problems that plague the black community every day. Cage even wears a black hoodie as opposed to the original yellow one as a tribute to Trayvon Martin. Oh, and let’s not forget the TV show Blackish, where the Johnson family moves into a predominantly white neighborhood and the kids feel the need to assimilate to fit in. However, the man of the Johnson family Andre (Anthony Anderson) isn’t having it and tries to keep his kids rooted in their culture.
Although black people are doing an amazing job creating more positive views of African Americans on television, can the media keep up with the black family? As the times change, so are black families. 3.7 percent of all African Americans identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender, with 84,000 African Americans living in same-sex households and raising children. Not only that, but more and more African Americans are dating outside of their race and getting married. All of these portrayals on screen are important for the African American community. We can’t just have one type of black family on screen or the “traditional black family” on screen because that’s no longer the case.
Black families can’t fit into just one box or category. Even among controversy, it’s important to showcase the differences in the African American community. The impact we have on our community is large, so we should set a great example and start by showing people that not only look like us, but are just like us.