While racism is not funny in actual practice, it can certainly be humorous in media. The prejudice and bigotry of sitcom character Fred Sanford was (is) actually one of the funniest depictions of racial animus that’s ever been produced in pop culture. Where an assertion like this would normally only count as conjecture, Sanford and Son did run for six seasons spanning five years. The show was so acclaimed for its comedy that it has now attained status as an age old classic, now solidified as one of the most hilarious shows in the history of television.
Sanford and Son did run for six seasons spanning five years. The show was so acclaimed for its comedy that it has now attained status as an age old classic
This of course was during a time where race relations had somewhat cooled post Jim Crow era, thus seeing a renewed respect for African Americans and a new hope for societal structure in the United States. The 1970s were also a time for experimentation within film and television, so making a show like Sanford and Son wasn’t that risky. The show follows junkyard dealer Fred Sanford and his son Lamont. Fred is a walking punch line, where Lamont is the respondent of most of Fred’s antics. Together the father and son get into all sorts of mischief, Lamont always seeming to hope that someday he’ll leave whilst Fred just seems content with his average and otherwise uneventful existence.
Ignorance and cultural misunderstanding is a huge part of the show. It’s no secret that people today would probably not receive the show as well as they did back in the 70s. People were undoubtedly far less sensitive then, and seeing as how this was simply part of the show’s comedy, audiences weren’t as quick to take issue with Fred Sanford’s casual intolerance. Red Foxx was also just so naturally funny that he knew how to play this character all too well, and having his son Lamont (Demond Wilson) step in to push back on his backwards thinking was clearly a balancing act that kept the show from being anything other than a sitcom. They only meant to make people laugh, and they very obviously did as the show was well received on all fronts be it commercially or critically. Even though the show would eventually come to an end in 1977, this would not be the end of Fred Sanford. Red Foxx was able to stretch Fred Sanford’s character across two other revivals, this being an obvious demonstration of his appeal to audiences of the time.
In summary, there was no harm meant and no harm done with screening a show like Sanford and Son. It would honestly do the world some good to have more shows like this and for the present day teens and young adults to have more exposure to this sort of comedy. Not everything has to be a crusade for social justice, and not everything said or insinuated about a person of another pigment or culture is asserted with the purpose of being harmful. Sanford and Son proved this decades ago, and maybe it’s time people started to remember this.
