This is a little essay that has been brewing in my mind since hurricane Katrina, and which I put together in honor of Martin Luther King, jr.'s birthday, though it applies to all of us.
This last week was Martin Luther King jr.’s birthday. I happened to watch some old All in the Family episodes that day. For those who are too young to remember, this was the Sit Com that broke all the rules so that all modern Sit Coms could do what they do. In fact it broke so many rules it probably would be unacceptable today now that reactionaries have taken away so much. It directly faced such previously forbidden topics as racism, sexism, rape, addiction, etc. All in the Family was one of the most pivotal TV shows in the history of the medium.
One episode I watched on Martin Luther King, jr.'s birthday struck me. Archie Bunker’s niece went out on a date with Lionel. Again, for those who don’t remember, Archie was a racist (though a well-meaning one!) and Lionel was one of the first serious black characters in TV history. Young, proud and intelligent, Lionel was the opposite of the racial stereotypes that dominated television. The very concept of a mixed race couple was practically unacceptable on TV at the time and it took a show like All in the Family to confront America with it’s racism. The episode focused on both Archie Bunker and Lionel's uncle taking the young couple to task for betraying their race. The old generation, black and white, could not take the idea of a mixed race couple. The younger generation in essence told the older generation to mind their own business.
I have been so used to seeing mixed race couples, both in NYC and Los Angeles, for at least 20 years. Without realizing it at the time, I witnessed the transition from mixed race couples being almost too unacceptable to comprehend to being accepted at least in big cities. That is progress. And, as I observed a year ago in a similar essay, I think there is no question that Barak Obama’s easy Senate win also shows how far we have come since the death of MLK.
But there is no question that equality has not yet been achieved in reality even if there is nominally legal equality. Mixed race couples are acceptable in the circles I have been used to for 20 years, but some places even in NYC would still be hostile to the sight. And I still hear fools ask the question, “Is America ready for a black President?
