Stereotypes In Dr. Cliff Huxtable

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Dr Cliff Huxtable became a popular name in the early 1980s as the character on a television sitcom, The Cosby Show. The show was the first of its kind and showed that not all black homes were broken and unstable. The man behind the character was Bill Cosby; a comedian, entrepreneur, beloved mentor and actor. Cosby slowly began shedding this image when in 2005; sexual assault allegations were made against him. A civil lawsuit filed by Andrea Constand in 2005, along with a detailed account of how Cosby sexually assaulted her, not only destroyed Cosby’s image but opened the floodgates for many more women to testify against him. The general account is that Mr Cosby lured these young women to his dressing room or even to his own home where they …show more content…
Phylicia Rashad (Claire Huxtable) and Malcolm-Jamal Warner (Theo Huxtable) have both expressed that their main concern is the destruction of the shows legacy. Warner, who plays Dr. Huxtable’s son, is saddened by the idea that the black community no longer have “The Cosby Show” to put up against negative black stereotypes. Warner has not out rightly stated that he believes the accusations are true but has stated, “What he's done for comedy and television has been legendary and history-making. What he's done for the black community and education has been invaluable. That's the Bill Cosby I know. I can't speak on the other stuff". [HLN Staff. 2015] Raven Symone, who plays Cliff Huxtable’s granddaughter Olivia Kendall, has remained quiet about the allegations but that she has kept her silence is due to the fact that she feels Cosby is the only reason she is successful in her career; “…he's the reason I'm on this panel in the first place. He gave me my first …show more content…
Cosby. Very few colleagues have taken a definite side with regards to the allegations. Almost all the actors on the show are African Americans and, given that “The Cosby Show” is such a positive reflection of black families, would’ve done all that they could to protect the legacy of the show. Keisha Knight Pulliam(Rudy Huxtable) strongly believes that what the show has done for people of colour could never forgotten and states, " the place that it [The Cosby Show] has in people's hearts is such a nostalgic part of childhood and beyond, it's going to be difficult to take back those

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