Ring the Alarm: The State of Black Kid Joy and What’s at Stake | Black Writers Week

To destroy the freedom of a child to think, learn, dream, and achieve, is to destroy their potential and subsequently, that of their community. With toxic stress in the picture, a child’s sense of fantasy and imagination, which can lead to innovation and high achievement as adults, is quickly traded for basic skills of survival.

Now, I am no neuroscientist but I am a writer, producer and showrunner in the kids’ space having produced live-action (“The Wannabes”), and animated series (“The Proud Family,” “Motown Magic,” “Onyx Monster Mysteries,” “Little Ellen”), a TV movie (“Jump In!”) and a book (Love Double Dutch! on Penguin Random House). I’ve dedicated my life to entertaining children through media (and hopefully providing some reprieve to moms and dads). So the thing that can mitigate toxic stress in children (and adults) is … JOY! The kind of joy that is free to laugh and to live unadulterated in the moment. Where limits and the burden of obstacles are removed, the imagination runs wild and the best emotions are marked in the brain as a happy, jubilant experience. That kind of joy. 

One antidote? It can be as simple as watching TV. According to the Child Mind Institute, researchers say a healthy dose of watching television can do wonders for a child’s mood, and improve their mental well-being, which often leads to improved academic performance. And it’s even better when parents watch television with their children, as it gives families an extra opportunity to bond and kids an extra moment of feeling attended to. 

Imagine that. Television can be good for kids.  

Unfortunately, many of the studies I’ve researched did not specifically point out the effects on Black children. 

And so I’m ringing the alarm. 

Yes, a couple of hours of watching television can be helpful for children, but how many shows can be considered healthy for Black children if there’s no representation in the role of main characters or heroes that appeal to Black children? Don’t get me wrong, many of the kid networks are finally being more deliberate in diversifying their casts in live-action and animation, which is an awesome thing to see. But where are the current shows that have Black leads? Maybe three, “Craig of the Creek” (Cartoon Network), “Young Dylan” (Nickelodeon), “Onyx Monster Mysteries” (Amazon), for both live-action and animation, out of maybe 40 current shows. And if there is a black lead, are these shows created by black writers, producers, or animators? One is by Tyler Perry (“Young Dylan”) and none yet in the last few years are with a Black girl lead. Also, if there are any new shows based on books, are the authors Black? None yet that I’m aware of.