Since last week, a growing number of beloved TV shows, like “30 Rock,” “The Office,” “Community” and “Scrubs,” have announced they’ll remove episodes or scenes in which characters wear blackface from online streaming and rental platforms.
A similar wave of creators and stars have pledged to stop casting white actors to voice characters of color on several animated shows, including “Big Mouth,” “Central Park,” “Family Guy” and “The Simpsons.”
But unless these steps are followed by other, longer-term actions that address the systemic racism in Hollywood, they’re purely cosmetic changes that let these shows’ creators and stars off the hook.
And while “30 Rock” is rightly held up and celebrated as a pioneering, trailblazing sitcom, Fey has never been great at acknowledging the show’s many shortcomings — such as its instances of racism, transphobia and ableism — when they’ve come up over the years.
And deciding that animated characters of color should no longer be voiced by white people feels like too little, too late, and only applies to shows that are currently airing.
