A new Sesame Street documentary explores the story of the beloved children’s series and the first Black muppet on the show.
The doc titled “Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street” examines Matt Robinson, the Black actor, and activist who introduced longtime Sesame Street character, Gordon Robinson. The film will detail how Robinson wanted to use the show to promote Black culture, despite Muppets inventor Jim Henson and others creators wanting to take a color-blind approach to the characters. Robinson agreed with the show’s diversity factor. However, he was still determined to show Black children a character that they could identify with. Robinson went on to create and voice the series first Black Muppet Roosevelt Franklin in honor of the 32nd president of the United States.
Roosevelt was a part of the show’s first season as a student at Roosevelt Franklin Elementary School. The character stood out by leading conversations about African-American historical figures. However, this didn’t always resonate with Black parents in the way that Robinson wanted.
“They didn’t want this stereotype to be present for their kids to emulate. They wanted their kids to be on equal footing. You can see the argument on both sides of that really: it’s a very complex issue, and it’s one we’re still grappling with today,” said Street Gang director Marilyn Agrelo.
The documentary debuted on April 23rd. You can stream it on Amazon Prime.
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