Though they may not have known it, Blackish just tackled one of the biggest issues surrounding the election: the blue-collar worker. Of course, I believe it was probably all a coincidence, but it actually is funny how it worked out - and I don’t say that often about ABC shows.
In Wednesday night's episode, “Jack of All Trades,” Dre (Anthony Anderson) and his wife Bow (Tracee Ellis Ross) worry about the results of his 9-year-old son Jack’s (Miles Brown) career test results which reveal him to be best suited for a trade union job. From that point on, it begins what seems to be a battle of the classes with some interesting responses.
When Dre tells his co-workers about his son’s test results, at first they pay lip service to craftsmen but soon it is clear they would never want that kind of life for their own children. They make fun of people who work with their hands and imply it’s beneath them, with racial undertones.
Dre: Bow and I were feeling pretty good about Jack after our meeting with Principal Green. So I should've known to call in sick. So what? He's good at working with his hands. Good for him. Doesn't mean that that's what he's gonna grow up to do. He's only nine! –
Connor: He's already nine?
Jeff: Late bloomer, huh?
Mr. Stephens: I had already bought and sold my first company by the time I was nine.
Charlie: I killed a burglar when I was nine. [ Book closes ]
Jeff: Oh my God. So did I. Come on.
Dre: Hey, you know what, I'm not gonna listen to any of this. Jack is fine. Like his principal said, "He's a good person."
Mr. Stephens: Outstanding. A good person. I love good people.
Jeff: Good people are the best.
Connor: World needs more good people.
Charlie: [ Whispering ] They keep saying "Good people," Dre. Like it's a code for something. [ Whispering ] Uh-huh. I'm gonna ball my fists up. It may be go time.
Mr. Stephens: I surround myself with good people. My butler, my stablemen, my fleet of maids, all good people. Wonderfully docile. And one day, they will be our food supply.
Charlie: You know what? I think they might have been just joking. I'm gonna un-ball one of my fists. Keep one in the chamber.
Dre: Why do I keep opening up to you guys?
Jeff: It is strange.
Mr. Stephens: Dre, you should be proud! Craftsmanship is the cornerstone of America. Now, I know that you like to say that slaves built this country, but they weren't our only heroes. Oh, no, no, no, no. Paid white craftsmen served with honor right beside them.
Jeff: Where's their seven-part mini-series?
Mr. Stephens: Exactly. Exactly. Look. You make something with your hands and you can say, "I built that"! Now, that's the -- that's the kind of pride that your son is gonna have every day of his life.
Dre: So you'd be cool if Connie built houses and worked on cars?
Mr. Stephens: Who, him? No, no, no, no, no. I love him. [ Laughs ]
Jeff: Oh, God. Can you imagine? Look at me, I'm a hand-worker. Ooh. All right? It's like this.
Connor: Is that a hammer? Oh!
Jeff: I don't know. I don't know what they are.
Charlie: I don't want that kind of life for Eustace. I saw what manual labor did to my dad. Back-breaking work.
Connor: Oh. What did he do?
Charlie: He was a back breaker. I just said that. No one listens to me here.
Dre: Okay, ho-hold up. You're saying it's okay for my son to work a trade, but not yours? Why? Because your son's white?
Mr. Stephens: No. Come on. That's ridiculous. Look, if -- if Connie were Asian or Indian, it would also be a tragedy because he's not living up to his potential. But a young black child defying the odds and growing up and becoming a union carpenter? My God. He could be on the cover of Jet magazine.
Charlie: [ Whispering ] Why isn't your fist balled?
Both of Dre’s parents defend their blue-collar jobs, but Dre argues that “every generation is supposed to do better than the last,” describing to his parents that “blue collar is going backwards” in this generation. While this sentiment matches the usual liberal elite, Dre’s father Earl (Laurence Fishburne) then fires back a decidedly unliberal-like statement defending the blue-collar worker, saying, “Before you know it, we're gonna be a country full of Youtubing selfie-takers living in houses full of [bleep] 'Cause nobody knows how to fix a damn toilet.”
Dre’s mother Ruby (Jenifer Lewis) also gets into the argument by adding a particularly applicable statement, “Everybody thinks they're too good for those jobs now. Entire middle class is disappearing!” While Bow shrugs off this comment, it’s clear from the recent election results that Ruby might actually be onto something.
While Dre and Bow seem to think that blue-collar work is beneath their son, it’s a definite fact that plenty of people throughout the United States put their blood, sweat, and tears into trade work to provide for their families and the services they provide are essential to our daily lives. Granted, their reaction is not a surprise since the Democrat Party also seemed to have taken the working class - whites, in particular - for granted, leading to their crushing defeat in the recent election. Just like Ruby declared that people think they’re too good for a trade, liberals apparently thought themselves too good for blue-collar voters, completely underestimating their actual numbers.
It should be noted that Dre and Bow eventually do come to an understanding about their son. Regardless of his job, they simply hope for his happiness in the future. While these white-collar parents seem to have some patience for trade work, I cannot say the same for some liberals.
