Editorial Opinion: How Urkel Made Science Uncool: The Politics of Identity, Cool, and the Rejection of Black Nerds
What was the cost of Nerd stereotypes for Black Boys in the United States? ( Photo : Google Search, educational purposes - Fair Use.) By Don Allen - Journal Of A Black Teacher (2025) In the 1990s, Family Matters, a Black sitcom about the bumbling, brilliant, and painfully awkward Steven Q. Urkel, was viewed by millions of American families. Urkel was TV's most recognizable face, known for his squeaky voice, oversized glasses, high-water pants, and irrepressible fixation on science and Laura Winslow. Yet underneath the laughs and the catchphrase "Did I do that?" There is a greater cultural implication: Urkel inadvertently caused science to be uncool among a generation of Black males. Urkel was not just a character—he was an ambassador of the "Black nerd," and not a likable one. He was solitary, pesky, emasculated, and continuously rejected. He was seldom cool, never heroic, and most frequently the punchline. During a time when Black male heroes on TV were few, U...