Cosby vs. Cliff: The Reality of it All

I grew up in the '80s and one of the most influential television shows of my youth was The Cosby Show. Every Thursday at 8p.m. my family would gather around our floor model television set and see 30 minutes of a loving and caring family through the Huxtables.

It was one of the most powerful television shows in history for African Americans, as it painted us in a different and positive life. A doctor (Bill Cosby/Cliff Huxtable) married to a successful attorney (Phylicia Rashād/Claire Huxtable), all carrying for their five children. There were no financial struggles or living in the ghetto; there was no stereotype of a black male calling detractors jive turkeys. It was a show about family and about African Americans finally obtaining the dream Martin Luther King Jr. gave his life for.

But I say all that to ask this very pertinent question. For all the good this show did, are those works now tarnished or perhaps undone by the scandal the lead star Bill Cosby finds himself in now?  (I don't know the truth about the scandal, which is why I'm not going into detail about it. My heart goes out to any victims that have suffered from this. I have a daughter and I can only imagine how I would feel if something like this were to happen to her.)

The November issue of Ebony Magazine brings this point up and has caused Social Media to explode in debate.

I have two answers. Yes and no. One cannot deny the successful impact The Cosby Show has had on African Americans. My wife told me that it was a show that made her strive for greatness. It was honest and positive, something lacking from today's programming content. For those of us who experienced Cosby before the controversies set in - quite simply the answer is no. Nothing can take away the show's contributions to our lives.

I look at my friends and my outer circle. We're all college graduates and have successful careers. It can be argued at all of these people grew up being impacted or somehow influenced by the Cosby show in some shape or another.

But what about future generations? What about my pre-school age daughter and my toddler son? The answer is yes.That legacy will be tarnished for them.  I say this because if they were going to watch the show and ask questions about Bill Cosby then it would become tricky. The impact that my generation benefited from would be washed away entirely on my son and daughter's generation.

This is a sad situation and whatever the truth is, one thing is certain, nothing will ever be the same again.