While people were fangirling/fanboying over shows like The Walking Dead, Breaking Bad, and Game of Thrones – I was still trying to find a show that I could connect with and could learn from. included real issues like social justice, racism, bullying, terrorism, feminism, LGBT, poverty, etc. However, I’ve carefully picked a handful of shows that are a great representation of these issues.

The Fosters

I fell in love with The Fosters within the first 30 minutes of the first episode which premiered in 2013. It covers so many issues including LGBT, alcohol addiction, social justice, different family dynamics, foster care system, statutory rape, drugs, etc. Every single character is unique and inspiring in their own way. It is a great representation of a happy interracial lesbian couple and a happy teenage gay couple. The Fosters targets a wide demographic of all ages and that is why this show is so important. It’s changing pop culture forever. It’s showing their viewers (especially young people) that they can be themselves, that they don’t have to feel so alone because there are so many other people going through what they go through, that they can be happy. My favorite character would have to be Jude, who is the youngest child in the family. He goes through the journey of questioning his sexuality in season 1 to falling in love with his best friend (Connor) and going through the trials and tribulations of being an openly gay teenage couple despite his boyfriend’s homophobic father. The writers and producers do an amazing job of developing Jude and Connor’s relationship in such a beautiful way.

Girl Meets World

Being a 90’s baby, I grew up watching Boy Meets World. To this day, it is still my favorite show and I watch it almost every day – I can even recite every single episode by heart. Boy Meets World covered several topics that weren’t really discussed in pop culture in the 90’s. This included interracial couples, drinking/smoking, the pressure of having sex in high school, racism, and sexual assault. In every single episode, there was a lesson taught (usually by the wise Mr. Feeny). So naturally, I had very high expectations for its sequel, Girl Meets World. I remember being so nervous to watch the first episode, wondering if it would be another cookie-cutter Disney show and if they would completely ruin it forever. I was wrong. Girl Meets World has an unusually serious tone for a network like Disney Channel and I love it. It definitely helps that its protagonist (played by Rowan Blanchard) is a 14-year old girl who has strong and educated opinions on intersectional feminism, racism, and sexism. She isn’t afraid to talk about what she believes in and is quick to stand up for them. Girl Meets World is a great show for people of all ages to watch and you’ll always get a life lesson after each episode.

Supergirl

Forget Superman! Meet his cousin, Supergirl. This show focuses on Kara, who has the same superpowers as Superman. She has to learn how to embrace them as she struggles through her life as an assistant for a gossip columnist. Kara is a strong female lead and I think it’s important to show young girls that women are powerful superheroes too – not only men like how society wants us to believe. Women can save the world, women can throw punches, women can defend themselves.

Transparent

Transparent is a Golden Globe and Emmy award-winning show about a retired college professor of political science who finally opens up to her family about always have been identifying as a woman. She is the father of three children, who all have different ways of coping with her transition. This show is entirely about the transition of a transgender woman which is phenomenal. Other shows have included plots revolving around transgender people, but only very briefly. Now we have an entire show!  It recently returned with its second season and let me tell you – IT’S AMAZING.

Orange Is The New Black

One of my favorite television show characters of all time is Sophia Burset, who is played by Laverne Cox. Cox is a LGBT advocate and a transgender woman. She was the first openly transgender person to be nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for acting and the first transgender person to have a wax figure of herself at Madame Tussauds. Although the show also focuses on bisexuality and other various important topics, I find that Laverne’s character has made a shift in pop culture and has made a positive impact for the transgender community.

Jessica Jones

Jessica Jones is a Netflix show based on the Marvel Comics character with the same name. Jessica is a former superhero who opens her own detective agency. It covers topics like rape, sexuality, and PTSD (posttraumatic stress disorder). The show does a great job of emphasizing the horror of her past without ever depicting it for the viewers. Because of this, it avoids sensationalizing sexual assault, acknowledges that trauma leaves a lasting impact on people, and relieves the audience of the burden of having to bear witness to the worst of what she had to endure. We’re able to understand the horror of her sufferings without needing to see it, which is important when it comes to trigger warnings. We live in a culture that still far too often dismisses the accounts of women who have suffered rape and assault.