There's a time when it was an event for a black person to be on television. Where black households would gather around, 'Oh, you know, Sammy Davis is going to be on 'All in the Family' tonight! Let's go check it out!' It was a big, big thing.
Interpretation
This quote highlights the significance of representation in media for the black community.
Sterling K. Brown's quote reflects on the historical importance of representation of black individuals on television. He emphasizes that there was a time when the appearance of a black artist on a mainstream show was a notable event, uniting families in excitement and providing a sense of belonging and visibility in a predominantly white media landscape.
In practice
During a discussion on diversity in entertainment, one could quote this to emphasize the impact of representation.
Life has to be everything. It can't be all sad. It can't be all peaches and cream. Because the lows have you appreciate the highs. And the highs give you perspective on the lows. If it's not everything, it becomes flat or mundane.
I have a certain memory of the way in which my father loved me until I was 10, and it was unconditional and eternal. I get to carry that for the rest of my life, but on a practical level after age 10, it's just me sort of figuring it out.
We're all trying to figure out what's next, what's best for our families, what's best for ourselves, and there's a certain sort of comfort in knowing that you're not in it by yourself.
There is a reason that many African Americans have a healthy mistrust for law enforcement. We don't always feel protected or served by that particular institution.
The humanity that is given to other people isn't given to us. There is an expendability that comes along with being African American.
It would be really cool to have my dad here to witness this, to see his grandchildren, to see this woman that I chose to share my life with, to just come walk on set and be like, 'Ah, this is how you make TV shows and movies.'
Whether you look at 'Glee' and its normalization of gay identity or you look at the work of Martin Scorsese and the Italian-American community, American culture is able to take these stories, which are seen as marginalized, and just turn them into American stories. And you don't think twice about it.
As the global expansion of Indian and Chinese restaurants suggests, xenophobia is directed against foreign people, not foreign cultural imports.
The pro skaters I know are responsible members of society. Many of them are fathers, homeowners, world travelers and successful entrepreneurs. Their hairdos and tattoos are simply part of our culture, even when they raise eyebrows during PTA meetings.
The transgender community has always been a part of Hawaiian society, where people who don't conform to the binary system of man/woman, masculine/feminine are accepted or, at minimum, tolerated.
Get the culture right, and everything else just falls into place.
People of color grow up steeped in 'white' culture. The reverse is not true. And, no, listening to hip-hop on the way to work does not count as immersion.
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