Yes, Archie treated Edith terribly though, again--that wasn't his intention. Archie meant well by Edith. That's what was so great about that show--they conveyed bigotry well but also educated viewers on how SOME (not all, mind you) but SOME bigots are only the way they are because they simply don't know any better. Take Roseanne--she is malicious with her bigotry whereas Archie is not. Archie genuinely believes that the blood transfusion he received from a black woman will give him "black traits". That's the type of bigot he is. Roseanne, on the other hand, is not the same case.
I do agree that he would have stood up for Mr. Jerfferson. In fact--he stood up for Jefferson's son, Lionel, many times and even defended Lionel's wife who was mixed race. Jefferson had a problem with it and Archie didn't.
We also must remember that Archie's temporary latin house guest, Teresa, was worried her abusive boyfriend would seek her out. Archie defended her by punching a man he THOUGHT was her boyfriend only to find out later it was her brother. He tried to defend her despite his prejudice.
The greatest example is his relationship with Stephanie, his step-niece. Upon learning she was Jewish, Archie gave her a Star of David necklace and told her: "If you love somebody you got to love everything about them". And, despite his prejudice, he held Jewish ceremonies for her in his home and allowed her to practice.
If only all bigots could be like Archie...sadly, they're mostly like Roseanne. I've known a few Archie Bunkers in my time but I've known far more Roseanne's. Sad, but true.
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