African Americans have come a long way in a relatively short time in the entertainment industry. From Hattie McDaniel becoming the first black actor to win an Academy Award in 1939 to the trailblazing success of Sidney Poitier in the 1960s, African Americans have consistently broken through show business barriers on the march towards equality. As Frederick Douglass once said, "Without struggle, there is no progress."

Over the years, progress was certainly made in Hollywood, especially on the small screen. In fact, the year 1990 saw a great influx of black talent on television. That...

According to the NAACP, with the cancellation of the Bernie Mac Show, for the first time in recent history, there is not a comedy with an African-American lead character left on the big four networks. When it comes to returning sitcoms and the announced new comedies, African Americans are missing in action.

While the genre is not as popular as it once was, there is not a shortage of sitcoms on the schedule. Out of the nearly 20 sitcoms on network television this fall, it is unconscionable that there is not an African American lead among them.

When you take into account the recent...