The Cookout

[Deleted member 231]

Can any of you think of some tv shows you watched as a kid that pushed an anti-Black agenda--either low key or blatant? I remember watching Dukes of Hazzard as a kid and even having a toy car of the General Lee!!!

The others that come to mind are Webster and Different Strokes. Its pretty wild how they get to you early through propaganda and media.

 

[The Honorable]

Can any of you think of some tv shows you watched as a kid that pushed an anti-Black agenda--either low key or blatant? I remember watching Dukes of Hazzard as a kid and even having a toy car of the General Lee!!!

The others that come to mind are Webster and Different Strokes. Its pretty wild how they get to you early through propaganda and media.

What a good thread but very difficult to respond to because my definition of anti-Black has evolved and so I was seeing things through a different lens.

Hmmmm…

I’m going to go with Good Times. For the simple fact that it didn’t show the best depictions of Black people towards the end of its run. JJ was a dumb coon, Florida was a mammy type, they got rid of pops…it was in some way gutter.

 

[Deleted member 231]

What a good thread but very difficult to respond to because my definition of anti-Black has evolved and so I was seeing things through a different lens.

Hmmmm…

I’m going to go with Good Times. For the simple fact that it didn’t show the best depictions of Black people towards the end of its run. JJ was a dumb coon, Florida was a mammy type, they got rid of pops…it was in some way gutter.

I was too yuong to really understand the nuances of Good Times, but it never felt funny or light. Always heavy. Jeffersons to me was great cuz it actually made me laugh, but compare Good Times to something like Leave it to BEaver, and they are two completely different depictions. And as good as Esther Rolle was, I wasn't buying her as the wife. Why would James wife that up? My older cousins always had it on so I had no choice but to watch, I was never into it and as an adult I can see why

 

[Deleted member 231]

Is Good Times based on Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry?

 

[Jay]

Is Good Times based on Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry?

No it’s based on Maude I believe.

 

[georgiaclay2022]

Superman (the tv show from the 50s, early 60s in black and white), Gillian’s Island, I Dream of Jeanie, Batman, 98% of all the shows on tv when I grew up. Bonanza, Gunsmoke, The Wild Wild West, etc. The absence of black people and promoting the main characters as role models we should strive to be like. I remember my brother saying when he grew up he was going to change his name to either Jim or Joe to be like Jim West or Joe Mannix…

 

[Deleted member 191]

For me, it was power rangers. Zack the black guy was the black ranger. Trini the asian girl was the Yellow ranger. Zack was the hip hop dancer, entertainer always chasing girls and smooth talking them. Trini was Billy the blue ranger's translator if you will because he was the smart geek who spoke in nerd and since she's Asian obviously she understands what he's saying and would say it in layman's terms. On top of that when there were science-y things to be done or figure out, it was she who was his partner/helper. Jason the red ranger and the white guy, was the leader of the group. Didn't notice any of it then but i did as I got older.

 

[SIXDIMENSIONS]

I didnt get into Different Strokes. It was too corny.And they still seemed boring even though Mr Drummond was rich af.

 

[Deleted member 231]

I didnt get into Different Strokes. It was too corny.And they still seemed boring even though Mr Drummond was rich af.

There's really only a handful of memorable episodes and Webster was an even more watered down version of that trope. There is a show I was really into (cuz I loved detective shows growing up)---but since George Floyd I don't have the stomach for-- and that is Psych. Dule Hill be soft shoeing in it, but as far as a technically, consistently well written show, it fit the bill. My aversion for anything police related has peaked and I can't even do the cognitive dissonance anymore tho.