one - heroine's best friend

Unfortunately, that's a bit of a trope right there - the "best friend" who is somehow Other (black/ gay/ etc) to prove that not only the white protagonist but the white writers/creators are "not racist" and often in contrast to other characters on the show.

But other folks have rec'd the show to me so I'm certainly willing to watch the program.

Buffy's world felt like some generic fantasy town

It occurs to me that BtVS is a total fantasy (vampires, anyone? And "Pretty blond former cheerleader and ex-mean girl befriends two of the "outcasts" near the bottom of the social ladder" is probably the biggest fantasy in the show *lol*) But the show's attempts demonstrate that there was some awareness on the part of the writers but the evidence of the show itself proves there wasn't enough awareness.

BTW, I need to make a correction, thanks to velvetwhip: the name of the boy was EMMETT TILL (not Everett) and he was 14 years old. I failed to check the facts in my haste, which is in and of itself an act of erasure. I apologize for that.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/till/filmmore/index.html