Animators in the 90’s Gave Every Black Character The Same Haircut in Cartoon Shows

Every black character in 90’s cartoons had the same box hairstyle. We noticed it while binge watching on some of the most well know cartoon shows of the 90s. When we kept seeing black cartoon characters with same box haircut, we knew it was a trend of the 90’s.

It’s quite possible that during this time period, animators were projecting their stereotypical views of black men’s hairstyles as the default look. This box cut was one of the most popular haircuts during the era, but the fact that it was used as the “gold standard” for black characters in cartoons is quite strange, and could be interpreted as a form of racism.

In comparison, their white cartoon counterparts were often presented with a variety of different hairstyles even if they were in line with the most popular trends at the time. Take a look at the proof below.

You can see that all have that same boxy hairstyle going. Granted it was one the most popular haircuts in style during the era, it’s still funny to see it was the gold standard among cartoons for black characters in the 90’s.

The good thing is over the past 10 years things have gradually improved. There’s definitely still some subliminal issues, but overall cartoons are now more representative of real life in terms of how characters are depicted.