Enlightened Racism

Racism’s face has changed over the many years it has been around. What used to be recognizable, is now hidden in the seams of our society and culture. A man named Sut Jhally studied the sitcom “The Cosby Show”, and found that in contained a new form of racism not recognizable to many. “Enlightened racism”, as Jhally describes it, promotes the myth that blacks that have not been successful in society have only themselves to blame. The reason why blacks are portrayed on television as usually upper class or middle class citizens is because it makes the show more palatable to a wider variety of audience, extending through racial and class barriers.

In years before, black television sitcoms were made for a black audience. The public found shows like “Good Times” and “Sanford and Son” to be for more of a black audience. However, as time went on and our society strived for a “post-racial” state, more and more ethnic characters were being used to target a wider range of cultural audiences.

These television shows often minimize the concerns of race and class by addressing these issues in a passive way and not weaving them into the plot, like many shows have tried to do. While these shows are not intentionally being racist to a specific crowd, they do affect certain schemas that allow us to think in a way that Jhally suggests.

While it may seem relatively innocent, the concept of enlightened racism does not have the greatest effect on the viewers. It hides and distorts the actual reality of how most black people live in society. Enlightened racism also relieves the viewer of any responsibility for the inequalities that are present, but not always noticeable.