Where are the Black sitcoms that portray the Black family as a cohesive, healthy unit? You know, the sitcom about the happily married couple — with decent houses and incomes — who parent some mischievous kids? Instead, Black programming has been replaced by a swarm of reality TV shows that consistently depict the Black family as broken. Look at Black Ink. Nearly all the men are drowning in “baby mama” drama. Love and Hip-Hop never fails to portray Black men as scheming adulterers and women as objectified fools — a far cry from Mr. and Mrs. Huxtable!
Phil Banks, a respected judge on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and his wife, a teacher who taught at an upscale prep school, have been replaced by a new reigning king and queen of Black television: Stevie J and Joseline Hernandez — it’s scary, I know. Check out the list of quality programming that we really, really wish would come back to rectify the deteriorating image of the Black family.
