I also noticed an episode of Andy Griffith last night where there were a couple of African-American faces in a crowd scene. Granted it is not the same as having a regular character, but by doing that simple gesture I think they were trying to attempt to give Mayberry a stab at reflecting a real town.

I grew up in a New Jersey town during the 1960's and the African-American population was very, very small at the time. Now in 2002 the town is happily diverse, not only a much larger African-American community but also one of the largest Filipino populations in the country as well as a strong Asian community. The town celebrates diversity with annual festivals and events that everyone celebrates. It would have been unheard of in 1960. I'm not trying to say the town is perfect, but there have been substantial changes made since the 1960's. People learn and grow. The initial comments slamming Andy Griffith were uncalled for in my estimation.