Native Americans' Portrayal in "Black-ish" Comedy Series
Native Americans have racists beliefs and supremacist ideologies that are indoctrinated into the people. The notion is a subtle practice in media, entertainment, and film industry. The attitude towards the minority groups has caused them to be portrayed in a biased way especially in television programs whereby they are treated as the inferior group. "Black-ish" is a freshman ABC comedy that negatively depicts the racial minority groups. Their positions and the interactions with the native Americans portray that they are less capable, troublemakers, who deserve unequal treatment by the whites. The paper will unveil how the minorities are portrayed in "black-ish" comedy series. It will also discuss whether the roles they play reflect their real position in the society and whether the programs deter or enhance the understanding of the minority groups.
Treatment of Minority Groups on Television
The minority groups are treated as inferiors and are sometimes portrayed negatively on television. Reflecting on history, it shows that the minority groups in America are disadvantaged continuously whereby they face injustice from time to time (Macionis 2015). In TV programs, the minority group is given the inferior characters that are treated with disrespect by others in the program. "Black-ish" has a diverse cast and incorporates many cultural issues which portray the minority groups as inferiors (Acham, 2018). The comedy series revolves around an African-American family of Anthony Anderson and Tracee Ellis Ross with their children. The majority African American characters in the series are portrayed as the inferior who is always considered as the lesser equals. The program reveals the theme of slavery whereby the minorities receive dehumanizing treatment.
Inequality Faced by Racial/Ethnic Minority Groups
The realistic positions of the racial or ethnic minority groups in the society are treated with inequality. Macionis (2015) asserts that there are situations that races provide guidance on the operations of institutions in a negative sense against the minorities. Police and other people in power consider ethnicity or race as a sign of possible guilt in America. The roles given to the minority groups in programs such as "Black-ish" TV program reflect their real positions in the society where they are treated with inequality (Acham, 2018). Issues like police brutality of the black Americans in the comedy depicts the reality treatment of the minority people in America. The theme of slavery is portrayed in the comedy series. Slavery communicates the inferiority of the minorities which exists currently in America.
Effect of Portrayal on the Understanding of Minority Groups
By the portrayal of various characters, "Black-ish" comedy series averts the understanding of the minority groups in the community. The description brings about a change of the perception among people (Macionis, 2015)). The inferior treatment to the group causes general population to have the same notion about them. Television can promote equality by designing the programs right. However, the series encourages a negative notion of the racial/ethnic minority groups. The continued demonstration of the minority groups prevents an objective worldview by the larger society.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the racial/ethnic minority groups are portrayed with discrimination in "Black-ish" comedy series. In the comedy series, they represent the characters while maltreated and oppressed by the majority groups. The characters they depict in the TV program is manifested in their real lives where they are treated as inferiors. The inferior portrayal of their characters averts the understanding of the minority groups in the community.
References
Acham, C. (2018). Black-ish: Kenya Barris on Representing Blackness in the Age of Black Lives Matter. FILM QUART, 71(3), 48-57.
Macionis, J. J. (2015). Social Problems, Books a la Carte Edition Plus.
