It's very important that while we count Carl Franklin as a successful African-American director, he can make whatever he wants. Look at Ang Lee. Sense And Sensibility to The Ice Storm to Ride With The Devil to Crouching Tiger . He's just incredibly prolific at describing humanity. I think as an artist, that's really your job in a lot of ways.
Some people like their niche, and that can be important, too.
But I don't think there's anything wrong with going outside of the niche, or outside your race or culture, and making a movie. There are a couple of things I can say about this. But what he seemed to be saying about talent in general was that once you achieved a certain talent, you ceased being a black person and you became an entertainer. And that really pissed me off, because you have to quantify achievement at some point. You know, Carl Franklin, we can count him as an African-American director even though he is just a director or filmmaker, and he can present a variety of subject matter.