Bill Cosby hosts Black History: Lost, Stolen or Strayed (1968)

Originally released in the summer of 1968, the series ‘Of Black America’ is seven one-hour documentaries presented by CBS News. The first installment "Black History: Lost, Stolen, or Strayed" is hosted by TV icon Bill Cosby and was written by Andy Rooney. Rooney won an Emmy Award and a Writers Guild of America Award for his work on this series. The executive producer was award winning TV documentarian, Perry Wolff, and the series was sponsored by the Xerox Corporation. It was televised at a pivotal time in American history because it was the end of the Civil Rights Movement and it was a time of racial/civil unrest. Martin Luther King had been assassinated that spring and riots in major American cities had followed. This groundbreaking series explores various aspects of lesser known Black history and its reflection of the current state of the Black community.  The series was presented in a primetime slot and featured segments spotlighting the changing image of Black Americans through film and TV clips, featuring scenes from The Birth of a Nation, to Amos 'n' Andy (the controversial blackface comedy series), to Guess Who's Coming to Dinner. 

This particular episode of the series even covers The Freedom Library Day School in Philadelphia, where African-American children were taught about their heritage and racial identity. It also included facts on some of America's less familiar Black heroes, including Daniel Hale Williams, the first doctor to perform open heart surgery successfully in America. Facts like this are important to reveal to the masses because these are true accounts of lesser known Black history that has been kept away senselessly. After watching this episode it becomes very apparent that everything African Americans tried to instill in themselves was taken away. Like when Black actors could not even use the same stage/studio entrance as White actors and had to use the rear entrance which was primarily used by servants. Our dignity and pride was even robbed by the negative depictions of Black people in the White-dominated film and TV industry that was full of portrayals of Blacks being dumb, subservient and/or lazy. All of this was meant to instill that being Black wasn’t anything good. This is what led to many Blacks doing things like perming their hair, etc. A pursuit in chase of universal social acceptability. This particular segment is a great watch because it provides insight as to why the Black community is disenfranchised and why many are overcompensating.