Oh, Degrassi. Everyone's favorite Canadian teen drama series that has been on TV forever. Although on the surface, Degrassi seems like your typical teen drama, it's so much more than that. It takes on issues that real teenagers face that most TV shows won't even go near. It's a show that tries to make every teenager feel like their identity and story is being told. To name a few, Degrassi takes on issues like bullying, relationships, teen pregnancy, abortion, drug/alcohol addiction, sexuality, gender identity, divorced parents, physical/mental/sexual abuse, racism, eating disorders, body image, suicide, school shootings, mental health (anxiety, depression), and so much more. It gives a voice to teenagers that aren't always heard in the media. It's the perfect coming-of-age show for anyone who has ever felt alone.
I had always heard of Degrassi, between my older sister watching it and my parents working on "Degrassi Junior High" in the 1980s at PBS, but I didn't start fully watching it until I was about 12 years old. I first binged seasons 1-9 of "Degrassi: The Next Generation," which first premiered in 2001 and then continued to watch the current seasons, starting at season 10 in 2010. "The Next Generation" was on TeenNick until season 14 in 2014. In 2016, Degrassi announced a newer generation called "Degrassi: Next Class" which still premieres on TV in Canada but is now on Netflix in the United States. The "Next Class" series picked up right where season 14 left off with the old characters but also introduced a ton of new characters so new fans wouldn't be confused. Season 4 of "Next Class" just came out on Netflix last week and I couldn't be more impressed with Degrassi these days.
Degrassi has always been known for being a very progressive show, but with "Next Class," Degrassi is even more progressive than ever. "Next Class" has started teaching kids about more current race issues and the idea of white privilege. It's also taking a political stance on the Syrian refugee crisis. Canada took in much, much more Syrian refugees than the United States did, so Degrassi wanted to incorporate this into the show by creating new characters that were new students at Degrassi who just fled Syria. With a huge influx of Muslim students at the school, it provides an opportunity to teach kids about being more accepting of others and debunking the completely false stereotype that all Muslims are terrorists.
Degrassi has also been a great resource for teaching kids about LGBTQ+ issues. "The Next Generation" introduced Marco as its first gay character in 2002 (there were gay characters in "Degrassi Junior High" and "Degrassi High" but I haven't watched them). Later on in season 10, Adam was introduced as the first transgender character. Adam's character was my very first exposure to what transgender means at the age of 12 and it definitely helped educate me and make me more accepting of others. In the newest season of "Next Class," the character Yael discovers that they are gender fluid or non-binary. I don't watch a ton of TV but I've never seen a gender fluid character before, just showing how Degrassi wants to reach more and more people and give them a voice. Marco, Adam, and Yael are the most prominent LGBTQ+ characters in the show in my opinion but there have been tons of other LGBTQ+ characters (Zoe, Paige, Miles, Alex, Rasha, Tristan, Riley, Vijay, Dylan, etc.), making it one of the most representative shows I've seen.
While it's had its ups and downs over the years and some storylines fall flat, Degrassi is an incredible franchise that has been working for nearly 30 years to make all teenagers feel less alone with whatever they're dealing with. Every teenager should watch Degrassi, because I'm sure everyone can relate to at least some aspect of some of the characters.
