Another character, an elderly tenant, dines on dog food. Talking about the neighborhood's deterioration, Muriel mentions a furniture store that has been replaced by a pawn shop. The store got looted in the riot, she says to jog Thurgood's memory. Larry Wilmore, who created the show with partner Steve Tompkins and Murphy, relates such examples unapologetically. He thinks the show is funny, he's hoping viewers will agree, and he's willing to stand up to naysayers.
Leaders dabbling in race-related humor do risk taking it on the chin.
The Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer, which attempted to find humor in Lincoln-era slavery, was harshly criticized by leading black civil rights groups even before it aired last fall. The sitcom was quickly canceled by UPN, which cited low ratings, not protests. The PJs also has come under preemptive attack. A week before its debut, Los Angeles-area activists held a news conference to condemn it as offensive in its comic treatment of poverty and addiction. But drugs are an unavoidable reality of project life, Wilmore said.