photo by steed media service

Words by DeWayne Rogers
Images by Hiltron Bailey for Steed Media Service

What is This?
So I just happened to get off work a little early one evening, and decided to indulge in a little "me-time." Now while this usually includes a nap, or catching up on my previously Tivo'd television favorites; on this particular evening, I felt compelled to live a little on the edge. I was going to channel surf. (I know . I'm a rebel.) Anyway, at first this mindless and aimless pursuit of empty entertainment was pretty uneventful. But with one fateful flick of my remote, I instantly found myself engulfed in a channel and a world that I previously never knew existed.

(Thinking to myself: When did ABC create a family channel?)

Was I so stuck in my ways that I had completely shut myself off from an ever-expanding cable roster? Apparently I had. But there I sat face-to-face with a channel that I had never heard of, watching a show that I honestly didn't think had a place on television.

(Wait . you mean this black family is still together? And the father is a very present figure within the household?)

Shocking isn't? Perhaps for some, but for the faithful viewers of the critically acclaimed hour-long drama, "Lincoln Heights," this type of positive imagery is the weekly norm. And it's actually quite refreshing.

A Rhyme with Plenty of Reason
This type of knee-jerk initial response is precisely the intended response that Kathleen McGhee-Anderson, who executive produces the show, and the rest of the talented cast and crew are banking on. Set to kick off its highly anticipated second season on a new day and time, (Tuesdays at 8 p.m. beginning Sept. 4), "Lincoln Heights" is poised to become everything that "The Cosby Show" both was and was not. With an intact family unit with the father prominently serving as not just a provider but also a caregiver, the Suttons, the central family of the show, follow in the footsteps of the Huxtables - but only to a certain point. Halfway down that road to becoming a safe, overly sappy black family that the world can't help but love, the Suttons decided to do something that you can't help but respect - they decided to be real. Now that's no dis to Cliff or Clair, but the gritty realness of a black family struggling to stay in love, raise a family, and still be a vital cog in the efforts to revive a community, is a side to Dr. Cosby's brainchild that we never saw. This point alone point provides McGhee- Anderson with an unwavering confidence in the show's ability to tap into the raw emotion of humankind.

"One of the beautiful things about this show is that culturally, everyone can relate to it," she revealed in a recent interview. "You don't have to necessarily be black to connect to the journey of the Suttons. The realness of their love for each other, and also the love for their community is something that is relatable to everyone, regardless of race."

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