Role Of Minorities In Sitcoms

Minorities in sitcoms were less portrayed in contrast to an accurate representation of the time period. Ironically, minorities in sitcoms were not always represented by minority actors and actresses. Sometimes makeup was used on a white actor so he could portray a black man. It was not until the 1950’s when African Americans were shown on television. African Americans were often portrayed as crooked people with poor English and less education. In the sixties, segregation and racism dominated in most social settings. In the seventies, most minorities were trying to deter from old beliefs of prejudicial ideologies. In modern times, minorities have equal rights to their white counterparts. Four sitcoms, Amos ’n’ Andy, Julia, Sanford and Son, …show more content…
In 1968, the actress, Diahann Corroll was the first African American woman to have a lead role in television. This was in contrast to using a white actress with black makeup. Some people felt that this did not portray the average African American woman in the 1960’s. Instead, it showed the movement of African American women entering the workforce. During this time period, minorities still faced racial discrimination until the sixties when the Jim Crow laws were abolished. The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws that enforced racial segregation in the Southern United States. In the show Julia, Julia was a nurse at a medical facility. Julia’s child, Cory, was invited to the birthday party of Cindy Blanchard, a caucasian child. Mrs.Blanchard told Julia that she was so pleased that Cory was able to fit in. You could tell she had to make an effort to say this. This was an attempt to politely judge Cory and separate him from the other children due to his skin color. Cory’s mother replied, “Why wouldn’t he fit in?” Another example is when Cindy and Cory were playing hospital and Cindy told him that the color of his tongue was not normal and she needed to inject him with something. A couple of seconds later, she told him that she has given him a virus. This was not uncommon where whites mistreated African Americans during this time period. Although the Jim Crow laws were abolished, …show more content…
During the seventies, the presence of African Americans in sitcoms was starting to become more noticeable in a society. It was a fight for equality for all races during this time period. Fred Sanford was a junk dealer who lived with his son, Lamont. Lamont brought home a porcelain antique. Lamont explained to his father that he bought it from a beautiful thin women. It was implied that since it came from from a white woman’s house, it was a collector’s item in contrast to the junk at the Sanford house, an African American house. While the episode was taking place, minorities often described white women as beautiful because they could afford expensive beautiful products. When Sanford and Lamont brought the porcelain item to the pawn shop, the owner initially thought they were delivery men dropping off some products. This showed people’s stereotype of African Americans during the 1970’s. When Fred and Lamont told the owner that they were not delivery people, but instead were seeking a price for they porcelain artifact. The owner asked to see ID. Although this could be seen as offensive, it was not uncommon for African Americans to receive such responses. This was a typical response for African American to receive because many people were still prejudiced . Another example of this is when Fred and Lamont were about