'Friends' creator Marta Kauffman will donate $4 million to establish the Marta F. Kauffman '78 Professorship in African and African American Studies at Brandeis University.
The creator felt "embarrassed" and "guilt" by the lack of diversity on her classic NBC sitcom.
All six main characters on "Friends" were white, and the show rarely featured actors of colors in prominent roles across 10 seasons and 236 episodes.
Kauffman admitted that it was "difficult and frustrating" to have the show criticized for its lack of diverse characters, but she became critical of herself following George Floyd's murder in 2020.
"It was after what happened to George Floyd that I began to wrestle with my having bought into systemic racism in ways I was never aware of. That was really the moment that I began to examine the ways I had participated. I knew then I needed to course-correct."
- Marta Kauffman
Kauffman's $4 million African and African American studies program will focus on the study of the peoples and cultures of Africa and the African diaspora.
