The Huxtable's are black and normal

I am a huge fan of The Cosby Show and grew up watching this show with friends and family but after reading Jhally’s, “White Responses: The Emergence of “Enlightened” Racism,” I understood the show from a different perspective. I loved The Cosby Show, because it was funny and it showed that an African American family is able to be successful and make it. For this very reason, the notion of blacks “making it” in society is something that white viewers cannot buy into because most black families are not like the Huxtable’s. Most people believed that the show did not represent a “typical” black family, which made me think…what is a typical black family? When whites expressed that the Huxtable’s were not a typical black family and said things like the Huxtable’s were “just like them” and “you can’t notice their race at all,” I began to see the show from a different perspective and recognized why white viewers did not see the Huxtable’s as a black family. They did not act out stereotypical “black behavior.” The family portrayed whiteness and appeared to be “just like white people,” which made it easier for white audiences to watch and enjoy the show. After reading responses from the white respondents, the majority of them watched the show for reasons different from mine. I loved this show because it reminded me of my family. This African American family in my eyes is just like mine. Not once did I ever think this was not a typical black family. The Huxtable’s are black and I see them as a normal family! What will it take for people to acknowledge that they are black and normal? I do not understand how there are people who still believe that blacks cannot make it, and believe this show presents a false reality for black viewers. This show was nothing but positive growing up and I will continue to see it in a positive light.