Background of Race

I was always a fan of The Cosby Show and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.  It wasn't until we talked about the Fresh Prince that I noticed racism was brought up by Will every once in a while when he was talking to Carlton.  In Jhally’s article she writes about the Cosby show and says, “What makes this show unusual is its popularity, its critical acclaim, and the fact that all its leading characters are black”.  The difference though was that Cosby’s family was a family that anyone could relate too no matter what color they were.  Jhally mentions that the Cosby show was nervous that they were not going to have a large audience.  Turns out that the Cosby show took off and the people that watched the show ranged from all different races and ages.  I honestly never watched the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and thought about how Will was being raised in what a lot of people would say was a white house hold.  The reason for that was because Will’s uncle was a gynecologist and his aunt was a doctor.  People saw the house that they showed on TV and everyone saw Will’s extended family as being white.  I never really saw that I enjoyed the show because I always thought it was funny.  The show doesn't include any “black humor” unless you mention Will making fun of Carlton for not being black.  I grew up outside the city about 45 min away.  All the houses were cookie cutter houses and the neighbors all seemed to have the same sort of mentality, grow their children up in a good community.  My neighbors my entire life were African American and I am not sure if that made a difference or not but to me they were the complete same.  I loved hanging out and playing soccer with their daughter and we grew up together and I honestly think that is a reason why I was able to watch TV shows like Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and not have any other thoughts other than how funny the show was.