No sitcom tackled serious issues like "All in the Family." Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most notable times “All in the Family” confronted social issues.
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00:00Why don't you call me Mr?
00:02Welcome to Miss Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most notable times
00:06all in the family confronted social issues.
00:09I kind of get the feeling that, you know, you're all trying to shove something underneath the tablecloth.
00:16Plot points will be discussed, so beware of spoilers.
00:20Number 10. Homophobia and Masculinity. Judging books by covers.
00:24You're going to want to bust them wide open when I tell you this.
00:26I don't know where he gets these brainstorms, but he thinks that you're the...
00:31I can't even say it, this dude.
00:34If you know anything about Archie Bunker, you know he's got a lot of opinions about things he doesn't necessarily understand.
00:41He's certain that his son-in-law's effusive and eccentric friend is gay.
00:45But the real gag is when he finds out that his good friend, a macho former athlete, is actually the one who's gay.
00:51In all that time, did I ever mention a woman?
00:53Well, what difference does that make? You're a bachelor.
00:56So?
00:58I know, but bachelors, they're always acting kind of private.
01:03Exactly.
01:04Needless to say, this revelation seems to upend Archie's entire understanding of manhood.
01:09Though it's not exactly clear if he has learned his lesson, the episode is pretty clear about one thing.
01:14There is no one way to be queer, and no one way to be a man.
01:19The truth's in the eye of the beholder, anyway. I'll see you later, pal.
01:25Number 9. Anti-Semitism and Vigilantism
01:28Archie is branded.
01:30Whatever happened to turn the other cheek?
01:32You can't do that no more.
01:33He's right.
01:34He's not right!
01:35Look, you stick to your testament, and I'll stick to mine.
01:37In this season 3 episode, white supremacists paint a hateful symbol on the bunker's front door after thinking theirs is the house of a liberal school board member.
01:47They only learn about the mix-up when Paul, a member of a Jewish vigilante group, shows up at their place.
01:53This unexpected visit pits Archie's reactionary politics against his family's non-violent beliefs.
02:00An argument ensues about justice, racism, and vigilantism that feels just as pertinent now as it did over 50 years ago.
02:08The show's stance becomes pretty clear at the end of the episode, when violence only begets more violence, and Paul, sadly, loses his life.
02:17Shalom.
02:23Shalom. What does that mean?
02:30Believe it or not, Ma, it means peace.
02:33Number 8. Homophobia and Discrimination
02:35Cousin Liz
02:36Was this Liz's room?
02:39Well, this was our room, Edith.
02:41Oh, you shared the same bedroom?
02:44We shared everything. Would you sit down, please, Edith?
02:47In this classic boundary-pushing episode, Edith Bunker, learns her late cousin Liz, was in a long-term romantic relationship with a roommate, Veronica.
02:56When Edith gives Veronica an expensive heirloom tea set, Archie blows his top.
03:02He's even prepared to get Veronica fired from her job as a schoolteacher if she doesn't give it back, though he thankfully relents in the end.
03:10She didn't hurt you? So why should you want to hurt her? Oh, gee, I can't believe you'd do anything that mean.
03:18The episode put a human face on the discrimination LGBTQIA plus people faced, and unfortunately, still continue to face today.
03:27One thing is for sure, though, no matter how inexperienced or naive Edith Bunker may have been, she was wise enough to know right from wrong.
03:35You mean you're going to disobey your husband?
03:39Yeah!
03:46Case closed!
03:49Number seven, The Second Amendment. Archie and the editorial.
03:53Sensible gun laws? Not in Archie Bunker's world.
03:57In Archie Bunker's world, everyone needs a firearm.
04:00The right of the people, to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed. Read that.
04:03Wait a second, you didn't read all of it!
04:05I read it all!
04:05You did not! Look, look, a well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. A militia, Archie!
04:14According to him, you need one.
04:17The 88-year-old lady down the street needs one.
04:19The passengers on a commercial airline need one.
04:22That's him rambling, not us.
04:24His extreme views land him a spot on a TV news program, where he delivers an editorial that has to be heard to be believed.
04:31You take your big international bankers, they want to, what do you call, masticate the people of this here nation like puppets on a wing.
04:40And then when they get that gun, turn this over to the communists.
04:44But in typical all-in-the-family fashion, Archie reaps what he sows.
04:48Indeed, his ideas are thrown right back in his face at the end.
04:52He and his family are held up by a fan of his editorial, showing the danger he didn't initially believe in.
04:58Mr. Bunker, did you pay for those drinks?
05:00No.
05:01Bartender, the drinks are on me.
05:03Number 6. Racism and mistreatment.
05:06To the crowd.
05:07There's no sugarcoating it.
05:09Archie Bunker was a bigot.
05:11I mean, why is it so important for you, for everybody to be the same?
05:14I mean, isn't it better?
05:16Doesn't it make life more interesting?
05:19Because we're different?
05:20Racism was one of his most consistent offences.
05:23But in this episode, like many white Americans had to, Archie was forced to take a long look at himself and his beliefs.
05:30My old man used to call people the same things as your old man.
05:34But I always knew he was wrong.
05:36So was your old man.
05:37No, he wasn't.
05:38Yes, he was.
05:38Your father was wrong.
05:40Zara!
05:40Your father was wrong!
05:42When he and his liberal son-in-law, Mike, are locked in a storeroom overnight, the topic of racism comes up.
05:49An inebriated Archie has one of his most sobering and heartbreaking moments, opening up about his racist father's abuse.
05:57My father, he shoved me in the closet for seven hours, teach me to do good.
06:03Of course, he loved me.
06:05He loved me.
06:09Don't be looking at me!
06:10It's not an excuse, by any means.
06:12But to see how twisted his sense of logic became as a result is hard to ignore.
06:18Number 5.
06:19Menopause.
06:20Edith's Problem.
06:22Edith Bunker is one of classic television's sweetest characters.
06:26But even she has to draw a line somewhere.
06:28I'm just trying to show you something.
06:30Stifle!
06:30In the episode titled Edith's Problem, Menopause has the Bunker household in an uproar.
06:36The usually cheerful and agreeable Edith is suddenly not so sweet, experiencing things like sudden mood changes.
06:43Say, something the matter with you?
06:45No!
06:45Well, I just want to argue with me.
06:47Don't argue with me!
06:48Edith, I ain't arguing.
06:50If you're asking for a fight, you're gonna get one.
06:52The Emmy-winning script gave actress Jean Stapleton some amazing comedy to bite into.
06:58It also gave audiences one of her best moments, when Edith turns Archie's standard catchphrase right back at him.
07:06The roar of laughter that sweeps across the audience alone is worth the price of admission.
07:11A lot of it may be humorous, but it's also pretty real.
07:14Plus, actually portraying and addressing menopause on TV in the 70s was no small feat.
07:20All of you listen to me!
07:23Well, stop looking at me!
07:27I said stifle and I mean stifle!
07:30Stifle, stifle, stifle!
07:32Number 4.
07:33Vietnam.
07:34The Draft Dodger.
07:35Archie and his liberal son-in-law Mike disagreed on most things, including the Vietnam War.
07:41In this Season 7 episode, two guests at Christmas dinner promised to bring the realities of that war right to the Bunker family's table.
07:49Whenever I ask him what he's doing up in Canada, it ain't like he's a deserter from the army or something, is that?
07:55No, sir. I'm not a deserter.
07:56Mike's friend is a draft dodger, who fled to Canada rather than serve.
08:01Archie's friend, meanwhile, lost his son in battle.
08:04Your opinion is more important than anybody else in this room, and I want to hear that opinion.
08:09The Draft Dodger has the makings to be a classic comedy of errors, and while the jokes are just as quick and cutting as usual, there's a profound sadness that hangs over the proceedings.
08:20The Unexpected Resolution is a heartbreaking reminder of the true cost of war.
08:25David here did what he thought he had to do.
08:29But David's alive to share Christmas dinner with us.
08:31And if Steve were here, he'd want to sit down with him.
08:37And that's what I want to do.
08:38Number three, integration.
08:40Lionel moves into the neighborhood.
08:42Now I really believe the house is mine.
08:44Oh, hi, neighbor.
08:46In typical fashion, Archie Bunker is upset when his neighbor sells his house to a black family.
08:52His plan to buy the dwelling back from them misfires completely when he learns that the new homeowner is Lionel Jefferson and his family.
09:00We like it here. We like the house. We like the neighborhood.
09:03And I know we're going to get along just fine with the neighbors.
09:07I'll see you later, Mr. Bunker.
09:08Despite the jokes, it's some pretty ugly subject matter.
09:11Of course, Archie's quest to keep his neighborhood white is racist to its core.
09:16But the episode pokes holes in his logic until he eventually gives in.
09:20We got a German mailman that never says nothing. Watch him.
09:28Oh, yeah.
09:30Look out for these colored guys on the garbage truck.
09:32They're always trying to set you up for that Christmas tip.
09:34Unfortunately, he doesn't seem to learn his lesson for long.
09:38He'd later try to keep a Puerto Rican family out of the neighborhood.
09:41And ironically, this time, he'd have Henry Jefferson as an ally.
09:45That's great, Nose. That's great.
09:47Look at this. It's Nixon and Brezhnev all over again.
09:49Number two, crimes against the LGBTQIA plus community.
09:54Edith's Crisis of Faith Part 1 and Edith's Crisis of Faith Part 2.
10:00Beverly LaSalle was a groundbreaking character for 1970s television.
10:04Although Archie's confusion over Beverly's career as a drag queen drives some of the comedy,
10:09it's Edith Bunker's genuine love for the character that really stands out.
10:14Oh, Beverly. To me, you're like a sister.
10:19No, I mean brother. Oh, well, both rolled into one.
10:23When Beverly is killed as the result of a hate crime,
10:26Edith becomes lost in her grief and questions her belief in God.
10:30It's a very heavy pair of episodes.
10:32The way I feel today, I may not go to church ever.
10:39The entire cast, including trailblazing drag performer Laurie Shannon, is firing on all cylinders.
10:46Once more, All in the Family is dealing with topics that are, sadly, just as relevant today as they were then.
10:52All I know is, Beverly was killed because of what he was.
10:58And we're all supposed to be God's children. It don't make sense.
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11:19Number 1. Edith's Assault
11:21Edith's 50th Birthday
11:23This two-parter finds Edith trapped in her house alone with a predator.
11:27It's heartbreaking.
11:29And there's an added realism that makes it almost unbearable to sit through.
11:33Sybil, I gotta go.
11:34No, no, I'm alright.
11:36I'm just rushing around.
11:38I got a lot to do before the party.
11:41What?
11:43Get rid of her.
11:44But she wants to know what I got to do.
11:46It's not the first example of the sitcom tackling the subject of sexual assault.
11:50But this time, Edith is the target.
11:53Her goodness is a running theme throughout the series.
11:56When something bad happens to her, it really drives the point home.
11:59Ensuring audiences will pay attention and care that much more.
12:03It was awful.
12:04Although nothing overtly graphic occurs, the episode tiptoes right to the edge, while also dealing with the repercussions in a raw way.
12:20It's an incredibly shocking, upsetting, and poignant story that, though horrifying, sheds light on a subject that, yet again, is still all too real.
12:29Oh, Edith, you ain't gonna identify the guy, aren't you?
12:32Yeah, if it's him, I gotta stop him.
12:36Which All in the Family episode always gets you thinking.
12:40Let us know in the comments.
12:41Well, if you're gonna answer your questions as well as ask them, what do you need us for?
12:45Your regular one-man family.
12:47Do you agree with our picks?
12:48Check out this other recent clip from Ms. Mojo.
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12:54We'll see you next time.