Diff'rent Strokes: Hidden IR Agenda?

The television show Diff'rent Strokes was a groundbreaking show for the time. For those who don't know Mr. Drummond, a white widower decides to adopt his former maid's two young children, Willis and Arnold Jackson after she dies. Now I didn't think anything of it at the time, but for a white man to adopt two black children took guts. Especially since they were his former maid's children. "Whatchoo talking about Siditty?" you ask? Well let me tell you.

Now we know Mr. Drummond is a very nice and charitable man to adopt two black children from Harlem, but really was Mr. Drummond all that nice and charitable? I don't recall Ms. Garrett being offered a raise to stay with the family when she was invited to be a housemother at Eastland. Adele and Pearl didn't seem to get much love either. Heck even when Mr. Drummond did finally get married, he didn't seem all that close to his wife or to her son Sam. What was it about Arnold's and Willis' mother that caused this ultimate act of charity?

Mr. Drummond was most definitely getting his swirl on with their momma. Let's get real, widowed white men tend not to be in the business of adopting, especially a man as busy as Mr. Drummond. For all we know Arnold and Willis are his kids. Let's put this in perspective. Strom Thurmond paid for Essie's education and sent letters, but he didn't dare let her move into his house, not even to be a pretend maid, and that was is own biological child. Lucy Mae Jackson the maid put a spell on Mr. Drummond. Imagine it, he is busy running his conglomerate, and at night he comes home to an empty penthouse, no one there except him and Lucy Mae the widow maid while Kimberly is away at Eastland. A close relationship was formed between Mr. Drummond and Lucy Mae on those lonely nights. Arnold and Willis thought their momma was working late......she was working it all right.



Arnold and Willis are all Mr. Drummond has left of Lucy Mae Jackson, so he wanted them as a way to continue to be close to Lucy Mae, even in death.

All and all even though Mr. Drummond's act of ultimate charity wasn't all that charitable, it worked out well. Arnold and Willis loved Mr. Drummond and Kimberly, and Mr. Drummond and Kimberly loved them back. Together they were able to overcome a series of issues. From Arnold dealing with bullying from the Gooch, to Kimberly and Arnold getting kidnapped, Willis joining a gang, and to Arnold almost getting molested by the bicycle shop owner. They worked together to make it through all those tough times and many more.