“Sesame Street” Welcomes Two Black Muppets to Contextualize Discussion on Race

March 31, 2021 admin Education, Entertainment 0

By Victor Omondi – (Source: www.yourblackworld.net) – The most popular children’s show in collaboration with its nonprofit counterpart is set to launch a program that aims at teaching viewers about “ABCs of Racial Literacy.”

Sesame Street will be featuring two new Black Muppets, Elijah and Wes, a father and a son respectively. They’ve been roped into the show as a way to advance the discourse on racial diversity.

Both Elijah and Wes are “humanoid” Muppets have melanated skin tones that fit the program’s topic. The characters will address race by showcasing representations of being black.

The backstory of the two Muppets has been captured in the show, detailing their lives behind the scenes. Elijah is a 35 years old meteorologist who loves spending a lot of his time outdoors, running, cooking together with his family and watching movies. His son Wes, on the other hand, is a 5-year-old who takes pleasure in going to school and playing pretend with his peers.

In a bid to contextualize the ongoing nationwide discourse on children’s race and identity, Sesame Street notified the public on Tuesday about the launch of its cast on racial literacy.

They wrote on their Instagram account, explaining the objective and the role that the two Muppets would be playing. “Designed to help families celebrate their own unique identities and answer children’s sometimes tough questions about race and racism,” the Instagram post read.

For many decades now, Sesame has continually offered kids’ content, addressing the current events such as I Love My Hair that was about natural hair enthusiasts and their autistic muppet.

Before the end of the year, Sesame will have released a 52^nd season that’ll focus on Racial-justice.

Many kids of this generation have experienced confusing and difficult times in the current America that’s characterized by racial challenges. In the past two years alone, they’ve witnessed individuals and human rights groups pushing for police reforms, the attack against the United States Capitol, the colossal effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the violence meted against American Asian Pacific Islander community.

Parents who want to join the conversation have been given a go ahead and the chance to participate via the initiative created by Sesame Workshop called “Coming Together.”