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This past June, Netflix announced via Twitter that it had curated a Black Lives Matter Collection.[4]<\/a> The company stated, \u201c[w]ith an understanding that our commitment to true, systemic change will take time \u2013 we’re starting by highlighting powerful and complex narratives about the Black experience.\u201d[5]<\/a> Separate from their already existing \u201cStrong Black Lead\u201d collection, these carefully extracted titles tell various stories of the Black experience in America and the battles against racial injustice.[6]<\/a> Popular titles found in the collection include, but are far from limited to: Ava DuVernay\u2019s 13th<\/sup><\/em>; Barry Jenkins\u2019s Oscar Award winner, Moonlight<\/em>; Spike Lee\u2019s Malcolm X<\/em>; and forever first lady, Michelle Obama\u2019s documentary, Becoming<\/em>. This was a captivating move by the streaming giant, at a time when Black art served as not only a method of expression for those who sometimes struggle to find the words, but also a therapeutic escape from reality in the throes of a very trying summer. Netflix\u2019s next announcement further substantiated their commitment to bringing Black characters to our screens and has resurfaced my thoughts about the #FirstTimeISawMe.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n In August, Netflix announced, again via Twitter, this time from their \u201cStrong Black Lead\u201d account, that they had acquired the rights to seven of the most beloved and classic Black sitcoms from the 1990s and 2000s.[7]<\/a> Beginning August 1, Netflix released one series almost every two week, and now that all seven are available, Netflix is the new home to Moesha<\/em>, The Game <\/em>(seasons 1-3), Sister Sister<\/em>, Girlfriends<\/em>, The Parkers<\/em>, Half & Half<\/em>, and One on One<\/em>.[8]<\/a> These shows are cultural favorites and per Netflix\u2019s twitter account, have been in demand from subscribers for quite some time.[9]<\/a> I am one of those subscribers, and I am thrilled that Netflix delivered.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Though I have missed them during the years they were not in syndication, I am fortunate enough to have grown up while these shows were on the air. Their revival not only brings about fond memories but has led me to give thought to the first time I saw a television character who I could see myself in. In 1996, Moesha <\/em>aired on UPN and it was 1999 when I saw my first episode. Starring famed singer, Brandy Norwood (\u201cBrandy\u201d) as the show\u2019s namesake character, Moesha<\/em>, in its six seasons, chronicled the life of a young Black girl navigating life in her upper-middle class family. While figuring out friendships, dating, high school, and eventually college, in the years following her mother\u2019s death, Moesha was a regular teenager, but also \u2013 somehow \u2013 a daughter, a big sister, an activist, and a trendsetter. Moesha wore braids, challenged issues of racial and gender equality, was an impassioned journalist, and had her choice between several of the best colleges in the country \u2013 ivy league schools and historically Black colleges. Moesha confronted social norms, broke rules, and created her own. To me, she was iconic.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The first episode I ever saw aired February 9, 1999 and was titled \u201cLife Imitating Art\u201d.[10]<\/a> I was not even four years old. I, of course only, remembered bits and pieces of the episode but in re-watching it multiply times since then, I have grown to understand it better over the years. In this very distinct episode, racial tensions had arisen in Moesha\u2019s high school between Black and Latinx students after a mural of Latino American civil rights activist, Cesar Chavez was painted in the school cafeteria during Black History Month. During the morning broadcast that Moesha hosted, she called out the school for allowing the mural to be painted during the month of February and not including any prominent Black figures.[11]<\/a>This was flame that ignited the tension between, not only students, but Moesha and her good friend, Antonio, who painted the mural. As the episode progresses, Moesha is forced to open her eyes to the plight of another racial minority[12]<\/a> in a way that I believe had to be unprecedented for a show about a teenager. Admittedly, this is a lesson that I am still exercising to this day. Although we live in a time of intense racial disparities and glaring anti-Black racism and violence, I would be insensible if I refused to see the plight of other marginalized groups \u2013 Moesha <\/em>taught us that in 1999 and reminds us of it today.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n As I think back to the first time I saw me in a television character, in the image of complex, yet down to earth high schooler, I have to acknowledge Moesha<\/em> as one of the only shows that I have been able to grow up with. At four, I chose to be Brandy for Halloween. At five, I ran around with a Brandy doll. At 15, I figured getting braids would be cool because Moesha rocked them. At 16, I decided that being a debutant could not possibly be that bad if Moesha had done it. At 17, getting into Spelman College was even cooler because Moesha was accepted there too. At 25, I get to reflect on the first time I saw myself in a television character and recall the lessons I did not know I would still value more than twenty years later. These recent additions have turned Netflix\u2019s Strong Black Lead into a time capsule \u2013 one that will undoubtedly allow another young Black girl to see herself for the first time \u2013 and opening up its contents will prove valuable for the future.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n [1]<\/a> Eric King, Ava DuVernay, Spike Lee, more talk representation for powerful new Netflix campaign<\/em>, Entertainment (Aug. 1, 2017), https:\/\/ew.com\/tv\/2017\/08\/01\/netflix-first-time-i-saw-me-campaign\/.<\/p>\n [2]<\/a> See id<\/em>.<\/p>\n [3]<\/a> See <\/em>Netflix (@Netflix), Twitter (June 10, 2020, 9:00 AM), https:\/\/twitter.com\/netflix\/status\/1270702290702184454.<\/p>\n [4]<\/a> See id.<\/em><\/p>\n [5]<\/a> Id.<\/em><\/p>\n [6]<\/a> See id.<\/em><\/p>\n [7]<\/a> See <\/em>Strong Black Lead (@StrongBlackLead), Twitter (July 29, 2020, 11:00 AM),\u00a0https:\/\/twitter.com\/strongblacklead\/status\/1288489544770129920?s=20.<\/p>\n [8]<\/a> See id.<\/em><\/p>\n [9]<\/a> See <\/em>Strong Black Lead (@StrongBlackLead), Twitter (July 29, 2020, 11:04 AM),https:\/\/twitter.com\/strongblacklead\/status\/1288490705250213895?s=20.<\/p>\n [10]<\/a> Moesha: Life Imitating Art <\/em>(UPN Feb. 9, 1999).<\/p>\n
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