On September 22, 2023, a routine taping of Family Feud in Atlanta took an unexpected and historic turn. Steve Harvey, beloved host and comedy icon, was in his element—joking with contestants, energizing the crowd, and setting the stage for another episode of pure entertainment
But when Marcus Sullivan, a construction worker from rural Alabama, stepped up to answer a question, the atmosphere shifted dramatically. Asked to name something surprising at a fancy dinner party, Marcus replied, “A monkey in a suit,” and followed it up with a smirk and a thinly veiled insult directed at Steve.
The intent was clear to everyone in the studio; it was a moment of casual racism that stunned the audience and crew into silence.
Steve Harvey, known for turning awkward moments into comedy, did not laugh. He stood motionless, microphone in hand, pain and disbelief etched on his face. As the audience gasped and security moved toward the stage, Steve stopped them.
“Don’t cut. Keep the cameras rolling,” he said quietly. For nearly a minute, the studio held its breath, the weight of the insult hanging heavy in the air. Then Steve spoke, not with anger, but with measured dignity. He addressed Marcus directly, recounting his own experiences with racism growing up in Cleveland, Ohio. Steve explained that Marcus’s words were meant to dehumanize him, to remind him that no matter how successful he became, some would always see him as less than human.
But Steve refused to let the moment end in anger. Instead, he turned it into a lesson. “You didn’t hurt me,” Steve said. “You revealed yourself in front of millions of people, your family, and your sons.”
He challenged Marcus to reflect on where his hatred came from, explaining that such beliefs are rooted in fear—fear that equality somehow diminishes one’s own worth. Steve then offered Marcus a choice: apologize to his sons for teaching them hatred, or stay, play the game, and have a real conversation about his beliefs and their origins.
Marcus’s wife, Jennifer, tearfully pleaded with him to choose the second option, and his father, Robert, a Vietnam veteran, admitted that he had passed down his own prejudices. “Don’t pass it on to my grandsons.
It ends here. It ends today,” Robert said. The emotional weight broke Marcus, and he chose to stay and learn. What followed was unlike anything seen on a game show before. Steve led the family through the episode, pausing between questions to share stories of his own struggles, his mother’s wisdom, and the destructive power of hatred.
The Sullivan family lost the game, but gained something far more valuable: the chance for understanding and change. After the show, Steve invited the family to a three-hour conversation, filmed as a special called “The Healing.”
In it, Robert and Marcus confronted their own racism and its roots, while Steve guided them toward empathy and redemption. The special, later nominated for an Emmy, became a national sensation, sparking conversations about race, forgiveness, and the possibility of change.
The impact was profound. Steve and Marcus launched a nonprofit, “From Hate to Hope,” offering workshops to address racism through education and storytelling.
Marcus traveled across the South, sharing his story, while Robert joined him, urging young people not to repeat his mistakes. Jennifer wrote a bestselling book about their family’s journey, and their son Dylan started a viral TikTok series documenting their transformation. The episode received a Peabody Award for its courageous approach to confronting racism, and Steve donated the prize money to anti-hate education.
Years later, Steve and Marcus reunited on Family Feud, joined by Marcus’s sons, now working as diversity coordinators. The moment Steve Harvey chose dignity and dialogue over outrage became a defining lesson in the power of forgiveness and the possibility of change—one conversation at a time.
