ABC’s hit comedy Abbott Elementary isn’t afraid to poke fun at the naive liberal attitudes of white people when it comes to interacting with black people. On Wednesday’s episode, “Fundraiser,” the school tries to sell candy to raise money for a field trip to the Franklin Institute, but it isn’t going as planned.
Barbara (Sheryl Lee Ralph), a seasoned teacher and church-goer, is getting frustrated, so she accepts help from the school’s principal, Ava (Janelle James). Ava teaches Barbara’s students how to scam people for money and reels in Jacob (Chris Perfetti), the school’s super-woke white history teacher, for the lesson.
Ava: Nobody likes to buy things from happy people, so I suggest you come up with an illness for yourself. My go-to is polio.
Barbara: Ava, no.
Ava: Barb, polio is back. Poke yourself in the eyes if you have to. Tears might as well have dollar signs in them. And you’re gonna wanna look out for liberal white people.
Jacob: Actually, I consider myself to be a progressive.
Child: Is there a difference?
Ava: You’ll be able to spot them, because they’ll be making this face. If you can’t sell candy bars to them, you’re unteachable.
Malika: Ow!
Jacob: Oh, Malika, are you okay?
Malika: No. But I’d feel a lot better if you bought some candy from me, an at-risk black youth.
Barbara: All right, that’s it! You’ve gone too far. May I have a word with you, Ava?
Ava: We’ll be right back.
Jacob: Ava, I thought you wanted me here for an educational emergency.
Ava: Oh, you played your part. Thank you.
Abbott Elementary is a refreshingly honest look at liberal white people and their attitudes toward black people. I’d say that they also portray liberals pretty accurately too. What do you think? Let me know in the comments below.
Erica Carlin is an independent journalist, opinion writer and contributor to several news and opinion sources. She is based in Georgia.
