What is the name of the first African American Muppet to appear on Sesame Street?

The first African American Muppet to appear on Sesame Street was Roosevelt Franklin. Created and performed by Sesame Street cast member Matt Robinson, Roosevelt first appeared around 1970 and became one of the program’s early Black characters.

Roosevelt was a reddish-magenta child with shaggy black hair who often spoke in rhyme or scat. Several sketches placed him at Roosevelt Franklin Elementary School, where he taught lessons about subjects such as rhyming, opposites, safety, and Africa. His name reverses the order of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s name.

The character was popular enough to receive a 1971 record album, The Year of Roosevelt Franklin, later reissued as My Name Is Roosevelt Franklin. However, some educators and Sesame Street staff worried that his boisterous behavior and exaggerated mannerisms could reinforce racial stereotypes. He gradually disappeared from the series after the mid-1970s, although he later returned for a cameo in the show’s 50th-anniversary celebration.