15 Times Black Television Shows Dedicated Episodes To Important Life Lessons That Are Still Relevant Today
In the '80s and '90s, TV was full of "very special episodes" of your favorite TV dramas and sitcoms that addressed heavier subject matter than usual.
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These episodes were meant to help teach the audience something important, or get them to reflect on a serious subject.
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Though they aren't called "very special episodes" today, they definitely still exist and can be standout episodes in a series.
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Some of the most profound episodes in television have come from Black sitcoms and dramas. Here are just a few of the ones that stood out to me:
1.Two of the earliest took place on Diff'rent Strokes. One 1983 episode showed a neighborhood bike shop owner who was also a pedophile that began grooming Arnold and his friend.
2.The other episode of the series deals with the dangers of hitchhiking, when Arnold and Kimberly hitch a ride home from to a birthday party, unaware of the driver's plans to harm Kimberly.
3.A Different World tackled a lot of issues that mattered to Black teens and young adults, like censoring in music, particularly rap and hip-hop, in Season 2's "Radio Free Hillman."
4.A Different World's "A World Alike" episode explores the limitations that young people are faced with in trying to live a life that represents their beliefs. As the school tries to divest from apartheid-entangled entities in support of South Africa, Kim learns the company also funds a crucial scholarship of hers.
5.And in Season 4's "If I Should Die Before I Wake," Hillman's speech students are challenged to look at their future, during which guest star Tisha Campbell's character revealed she was living with HIV.
6.A Different World also addressed colorism in Season 5's "Mammy Dearest" when Whitley includes mammy imagery in a presentation about the historical depictions of Black women, which upsets Kim who has always been linked to the stereotype because of her features.
7.Family Matters explored some of the tensions around modernizing education that we're still dealing with today when Laura and Steve advocate for a class about different cultures and races.
8.The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air also had a number of episodes dealing with heavy subjects. Carlton experiences racism firsthand for the first time in Season 1's "Mistaken Identity."
9.In another episode, Will's friend gives him speed when he's having trouble juggling work, school, sports, and dating.
10.There's also a heart-wrenching episode, "Bullets Over Bel-Air," where Carlton and Will are robbed at an ATM at gunpoint, and Will is shot.
11.That's So Raven had an episode, "True Colors," where Chelsea and Raven go out for the same job at the mall, and while Chelsea doesn't manage tasks as well as Raven, she gets the job.
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In a vision, Raven discovers the store manager never had any intention of hiring her because she didn't believe in hiring Black people.
12.Degrassi: The Next Generation explored tokenism when Liberty goes all in on Greek Week, just to find out she's being chosen by the prestigious sorority of her choice to "fill a quota."
13.Black-ish tackles the heartbreaking deaths of Black teenagers at the hands of police in "Hope."
14.Pose's handling of Candy Ferocity's death in "Never Knew Love Like This Before" addressed the heartbreaking issue of violence against trans women of color.
It is with a heavy heart that we tell this very real story. People ask, "Why Candy?" Well it's because it's happening to so many trans women of color like her, and these women are the center of our show. I hope your mourning pushes you to show up for other Candy girls. #PoseFX
Ross shared, "It's one of those things that I feel like as soon as I heard the information, and was devastated and wanted to first ask, 'Why? Why me? Why Candy?' It was just such an echo of the same sentiment to any Black trans woman that’s been passing week after week. Why them?"
15.Lastly, a recent episode of The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder looks at how certain medical conditions can be judged or interpreted by families, when Oscar and Trudy learn that BeBe is being diagnosed with autism.
Did these episodes feel impactful to you? Which ones are missing from this list? Discuss in the comments.
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