The Cast of MTV’s Washington Heights Deserved Better

With promising ratings, the show debuted on MTV on January 9, 2013. Throughout its 11 episodes, the program highlighted what it was like for Black and Brown Latine kids to carve out careers for themselves without intergenerational wealth or industry connections. Audubon pursued a career as a rapper. Frankie was a spoken word poet and writer. Jimmy had hoped to become a professional baseball player. Rico wanted to be an actor. And Fred was interning in the fashion industry. It also portrayed the everyday challenges that get in the way of some folks reaching their career goals: There were encounters with the law, reconciling with estranged, incarcerated parents, friendships turned into situationships, and the reality of race, class, and privilege with the group’s sole non-Latine white cast-mate, Taylor.