''Simpsons' drops white actors in non-white roles
TV comedy "The Simpsons" is to stop using white actors to voice characters of color.
Producers of the show made the announcement in a statement on Friday (June 26).
It follows years of public pressure about the show's Indian convenience store character Apu, who is voiced by Hank Azaria.
Azaria said earlier this year that he would no longer play the character, which has been criticized as a negative portrayal of Indian-American.
Azaria has also voiced the Simpsons characters of Black police officer Lou and the Mexican-American Bumblebee Man.
Another white actor, Harry Shearer, has played Dr. Hibbert, who is Black.
The statement from the show producers did not say whether Apu or other characters would remain on the series.
"The Simpsons" has captured the changing face of America for more than 30 years.
It is the longest-running scripted show on U.S. television and syndicated in more than 100 countries.
The announcement is part of a widespread reckoning for U.S. pop culture about racism, following mass protests this month over the killings of Black Americans by police.
