Aunt Jemima products finally get a new name

And this will benefit mankind how?

I like this name better. I always thought aunt Jemima sounded goofy even when I was young and didn’t get the racism part.

It doesn't quite roll off the tongue.

I liked Aunt Jemima. I thought her smiling face was very appealing.

FAIL.

I miss Aunt Jemima too

That name is even worse. Now it sounds like they're marketing to lesbians.

Aunt Jemima is still written on the box! 😒

Pearl?? Now the Asians will be offended.

The name is... eh. But the logo is... wtf does a building have to do with anything?

I approve!

Oh wait. It's a MILL

Everyone will continue calling it Aunt Jemima, I'm sure. If they didn't want to play to black stereotypes, they could have renamed at Adolf Hitler.

Pearl Milling Company sounds like an old time gospel group.

I wish they had called it Minnie Pearl Company.

Start a line of Pearl Clutching Products for the eldergay DL'ers.

One fewer thing for the Times et al to bitch and moan about. Good.

Hurry up with Cultural Revolution 2 and then shut the fuck up, miserable loser horde.

She was made up? I thought she was a real person and the issue was she was used as a mascot and got no benefit. Or was that Uncle Ben?

I understand that these images originally came from racist origins, but what about other spokespersons like Marie Callander? I wish they could actually celebrate a woman chef of color and have it be authentic. There’s a story behind an actual cook in history that is inspiring. Similar to the proposed Harriet Tubman portraits on paper money. Non-person logos are safe, but they lack humanity.

I understand why it had to be changed, but I just hope they don’t avoid all spokespeople that are actually real and inspiring. I understand that that was not the case with her.

As an Irishman, that fucking Lucky Charms cunt better be on the way out, too.

And I'm sick and tired of being on the Quaker Oats box!

Now wait a damn minute...

I don't even get why "Aunt Jemima" is racist. She's someone's aunt who makes pancakes, pictured in the 1920s or thereabouts.

Mammy Pearl sounds fine.

To compensate, I hear they are changing Uncle Ben's name to "Happy Schvartze"

R18, she was based on a real person, Lilian Richard. She traveled doing cooking demonstrations as a brand ambassador, which was a good job for a black woman in 1911.

Uncle Ben was based on a maitre d’ a in a Chicago restaurant, Frank Brown. They should have just compensated his descendants. Maybe they wanted too much money to settle.

well

Here’s a picture of the real “Aunt Jemima,” Lillian Richard, doing a product demonstration.

It’s too bad these people are all just being erased, instead of people being able to find out about the real person behind the name. In those days, they were exceptional people. Lillian Richard was only 20 when she got that job. She left her home and moved to Dallas, and traveled all over for her job. For a young girl to move to a new city and travel for work was a big thing in those days. Most women weren’t allowed to leave their home town without getting married or going with their family.

[quote] I don't even get why "Aunt Jemima" is racist.

Maybe this old ad will help explain it to you.

Or this one.

Catchy.

Exactly r27. Erasure.

I get the mascotinization is wrong. But the real people should be celebrated or known.

Now we just have a mill.

they should have used the opportunity to teach people about the real woman and her life, like r25 and r27 have, explain that past iterations were of their time, but refuse to stop honouring an interesting remarkable woman just because of a few hysterical campaigners, maybe even rename it Aunt Lillian.

And show a rendering of her real face, not a caricature.

So anything depicting people speaking anything except standard English is racist?

Wat.

I predict sales will plummet.

I understand the reason for the change -but not the final choice. Pearl Milling Company? WTF? Is PMC an acronym for something? Pancakes Made Correct?

This isn't going to end well.

They already updated Aunt Jemima to look like a CEO on the bottle. That was good enough.

And I don't know if they ever did, but just add a blurb about the history of the real Jemima being a trailblazer on the back of the bottle and be done with it.

No one is going to buy this stuff now.

If it tastes the same, 99.99% of their customers will keep buying it.

New Coke, anyone?

They should have changed it to “Ain’t I A Gem?” Pancake Mix

Why couldn't they just change the name to a contemporary African-American female name?

Cousin Pearl Milling Company

A voice of reason

Bring back Auhnt Jemima!

R28 What's racist about that ad?

Why didn't they just change it to Aunt Pearl or Aunt Millie? What would have happened if they had changed it to a white woman? Then they'd be racist for that, right?

Hmmm... They would have benefited from something catchier. However, I've never been a regular consumer of that stuff.

They shoulda had a gay on this case.

We love a but of pearl milling and would love to do the commercials!

They could of covered a lot of "woke" ground with "Mrs. Doubtfire" Pancake Mix/Syrup. They could have featured Robin Williams' flaming tits on the box as well

Off Topic for r48: There is also a Mrs. Doubtfire musical that had finished a Seattle tryout and a handful of Broadway previews and was all set to go for a Broadway opening last spring before the plague shut everything down.

Found this on Twitter for all those racists who miss Aunt Jamima

[quote] Why couldn't they just change the name to a contemporary African-American female name?

Aunt SharKeisha's Pancake Mix

Poundingly Delicious!

Aunt Chlamydia's Sweetheart Drippings.

This is Pearl.

The rare times that I make pancakes I have always used Bisquick and for Syrup I use Mrs Butterworth, which are both superior products and I will continue to do so.

Get woke. Go Broke. Nobody will buy this shit.

Isn't Mrs. Butterworth also a black lady? How come she's not Diamond Digging Company or something by now?

R56, I thought so, but in this commercial, but she sounds like an old white lady:

[quote]she sounds like an old white lady:

AGEISM!!!

Horrible new name.

I like it - much better than Aunt Jemima.

R55 everyone who bought syrup before will buy it. Anyone who OMG BOYCOTT will boycott it about one round then go back to it.

Aunt Jemima just reminded me of my own mom. I thought that was the point. To remind you of the person making you breakfast right there.

Name tells consumer nothing about the product.

People will soon be pouring it on their hair!

Hopefully sales will plummet and they will realize how stupid this all was

Good riddance.

There is only ONE Jemima.

Ahhhh pearl mirring company??? Sound very tasty.

I wonder if they tested the new name in focus groups at all. This is almost like when a college changes its controversial mascot to something bland like "Blazers" or "Generals."

It would have been simpler to just call it "Quaker", which is the company that makes this stuff.

Do they mill pearls to make this crap?

Rosa Park-cakes sounds much more appetizing.

I buy real maple syrup, thanks.

I make my own r71

Now they can sell it at Whole Foods!

[quote]Why couldn't they just change the name to a contemporary African-American female name?

Nene needs a job, they should put her face on the bottle

It's the wrong color for a pearl necklace.

[quote]It would have been simpler to just call it "Quaker", which is the company that makes this stuff.

I'm sure Quaker is problematic too. I would have gone with "Pancake Fixins" or "Culturally Aware Pancakes"

Did "Uncle Bottom" not do well in testing?

I have to sit in wonder that someone got paid an awful lot to come up with that name.

The syrup is garbage, and bad for one's health. I suggest "Aunt Fat Ass" or "Diabetes Juice"

[quote] I'm sure Quaker is problematic too. I would have gone with "Pancake Fixins" or "Culturally Aware Pancakes"

How about “Culturally/Racially Aware Pancakes”? CRAP. That’s what this preservative powder mix and sugar water syrup is anyway.

Pearl Milling is my drag name.

"Pearl Milling" is offensive to lesbians!

r65 I believe Beatrix Potter would disagree with you.

Pearl at her mill.

Mrs. Butterworth is consulting her lawyers.

The people who are upset with the name change probably think that [italic]Somg of the South[/italic] should be released by Disney.

I’ve decided to blame this on ball-roller Jussie.

Hmm and who was “employed” at this milling company?!

R31, about “mascotization,” when Lillian Richard was the brand ambassador for Aunt Jemima, virtually every product had a mascot. Some were real people, some were drawings of people, like Betty Crocker, some were cartoon characters. There was a period where there were a lot of human mascots that were fictional characters, like Mr Clean, and some were based on real people like Pep Boys’ Manny, Mo and Jack. Then there were cartoon-like characters like the Pillsbury Doughboy, Bob’s Big Boy, the Michelin Tire Man, Paul Bunyan and a million others. Manufacturers wanted you to see an image and think of their product.

That eventually went out of fashion. Part of the reason was that this devolved into celebrity endorsements, and some of the celebrities were found to be doing scandalous things that hurt the brand. So they moved away from it. Now it’s cartoon characters like the Energizer Bunny, that can’t get arrested for DUI.

During radio shows and the early days of television, show hosts had to read commercials for products on the air (Dinah Shore and “See the USA, in your Chevrolet!”). In that era, a product might endorse an entire show, or be very identified with a certain show, like The Colgate Comedy Hour in the 1950s on NBC TV. Chesterfield Time radio show in the 1930s and 1940s was also known as Glenn Miller’s Moonlight Serenade.

You can’t really judge the mascot issue by today’s standards. In the early days of mascots, they were so common, it would be almost every well known brand. About Aunt Jemima being racist, she was modernized over and over.

The same thing happened with Betty Crocker. They changed the image every ten years or so. At first she was a motherly housewife, eventually she became a businesswoman “food expert.” Some of the early versions were based on real models, or combinations of several people. The latest portrait version is from 1986. She was never a real person, but the first Betty Crocker was named after a then-retiring male board member, William Crocker. They picked “Betty” because it sounded friendly.

Here’s the original 1936 Betty Crocker. She looks like an idealized version of somebody’s dear old mother.

Here’s the 1996 Betty Crocker, the most recent one. This is a computerized composite of 75 women, somewhat influenced by a previously used model.

The new logo is cold, impersonal and unattractive. Bring back the much-loved and respected Aunt Jemima!

CRAP is the perfect name.

I don't know any black people who have ever been upset about Aunt Jemima. I do know some white people who have used as Aunt Jemima as some racist stereotype, but they were idiots. Since they updated the character to a more modern looking black woman, they probably, as a happy medium, should have just removed the "Aunt" and called it Jemima's Pancakes.

What about all the Millennials who named their daughters 'Jemima'? Will they have to change?

Let’s just stick with the unproblematic Bisquick.

Will they rehire Gladys Knight to sing the updated song?

I wonder what would happen if we went the complete opposite direction and called the product something like "Uncle Jesse's Redneck Best Pancake Mix," or "Grand Wizard's Supreme Pancake Syrup For Whites Only," or "General Lee's Kill the Yankees Brand Muffin Mix."

[quote] Bisquick

Bisquick needs to make up its mind. It's either Gaysquick or Straightsquick. Bisquick is not real.

@r98, see r50

I actually think this is a disservice to the black community.

I never once thought the name was racist, I will admit that the older image I grew up with did conjure up stereotypes of black women in the Deep South until the revised more modern image was used which I thought was positive.

[quote]I never once thought the name was racist

Let me guess: you're white.

Some of you wouldn't admit there was racism if it strolled up and booted you in the add.

Or even in the ass.

They were considering for a while to make Roxane Gay the face of the old product ("I'm exhausted--make your own damn pancakes") but they decided the name change was a smarter move.

The family speaks

I'm with r15. The logo could be a hat with a price tag on it.

Betty Crocker's pussy stinks.

They’re not naming it after the real woman because then they’d have to pay.

Mrs Butterworth makes fun of the disabled.

R102 You would be wrong, do you automatically assume everyone everyone is either black or white?

Children are not born racist, so I have no reason to lie about why I did not find the name racist as a child. I fondly remember eating pancakes and syrup and that’s all that matters as a kid. I associated the packaging with a preferred meal and could easily pick it out at the grocery store for my mom to buy.

I only began to realize the image was a stereotype of the Deep South as I got older.

And when did you realize its garbage calories?

It will go out of business. And good riddance. Shows what happens when you give into mobs.

The article says Lilian Richard's family doesn't want to erase her history but that her niece supports the decision? WTF?

Horrible name.

They should have kept the Jemima portion of the name and called it something like Jemina's Own or Jemima's Favorite.

Uncle Ben's had the right idea when they kept the Ben portion of the name and changed it to Ben's Original

The name Jemima is not racist. It was attached to what some consider racist imagery, but the name Jemima is not racist.

The familiar color, font, and logo is still literal violence.

Glamorous!

The big rape was Jemima being gendered. They should have gone with JemimX.

why not the starlight vocal band? or simply afternoon delight? or A.J.?

Looks like Anna Short Harrington was cancelled. I think she’s the very first cancelled black woman.

Betty Crocker looks like Linda in HR.

Actually all the black actresses who played Aunt Jemima have been cancelled. Sad they’ve all been omitted.

All these actresses have been replaced by a building.

Be Best Pancakes

Pearl Milling sounds like an aggressive form of clit flicking and I'm triggered!

Pearl Milling? It sounds rather cold and industrial. Dumping the aunt Jemima is stoopid. It’s not like she was still portrayed as a nappy headed mammy, the image was maybe a little bit dowdy, but certainly not racist.

This is America and in America we make decisions based on profits and then we justify it. OBVIOUSLY, sales were down and they made a desperate change to increase revenue.

No one expects to have their consciousness raised by a box of pancake mix. I'm talking to you Ms. Butterworth.

[quote] Be Best Pancakes—M. Trump

Do you mean that as a new brand name, Mrs. Trump, or an an injunction to the pancakes?

When I was a kid I had what I THOUGHT was a friend--we rode bikes together and both his mother named, yes, Jemima, and mine were "lunch mothers" and were friends. But one day, we were all playing dodge ball in gym class and I realized that he was constantly aiming at me. Missing but aiming at me. It hurt so bad because I thought we were friends and I felt betrayed. Yelling the then popular oath, "Yo mama!", just wasn't enough. So I threw the ball at his fucking head while shouting, "Jomama Jemima!"

[quote]why not the starlight vocal band?

Oh, dear.

I guess Uncle Remus cum was taken.

Because she is a respectable married woman R56.

Now that Aunt Jemima is sorted, I am finding Bisquick extremely problematic. I am naturally slow or unhurried and I find the quick offensive. Not all of us are quick! Change it!

Any Chicago eldergays remember Lafayette, the doorman at Park Place Tower? 655 W. Irving Pk. I always thought he looked like Rastas, the Cream of Wheat chef.

There was a nelly , black muscle queen ,personal trainer at my gym that wore a red checked Do-rag back in the day and we nicknamed him Jemima!

"If you ain't eatin' Wham, you ain't eatin' ham!"

Cream of Wheat will be next , they should keep the name, but drop the photo of the Black porter.

Now it looks like a cheap knockoff brand you’ll find behind the shelves at Walmart

Look for a big publicity rollout..."new name, but the same wonderful product that has been enjoyed over hundred years. "

Pearl Milling is such an odd name for a food product, it doesn't sound like it has anything to do with food at all.

Guaranteed in a year they drop "Company" and introduce Pearl Milling, a svelte lovely black woman. A few years later, Pearl Milling will become Aunt Pearl. Then a few years later. . .Aunt "Jemima" Pearl. Sane great aunt with classic Jemima flavor!

They should have called it Gramma Pearl. All people, white, black, and more, have a Grandma.

They should have called it "Mama's Pearl" and put Michael Jackson's face on the bottle.

It would fly off the shelves.

They should've called it "Pearl's Pancakes" and had an old black woman....

Oh, wait.....

Where did they get this name? The article didn't explain. Why couldn't they just call it "Pearl's"?

Aunt Jemima always hated Betty Crocker. She called her "that white bitch."

[quote] Now it looks like a cheap knockoff brand you’ll find behind the shelves at Walmart

You mean as opposed to before, when it looked so swanky and glamorous?

[quote] Where did they get this name? The article didn't explain.

They do, actually. It's the name of the mill in St. Louis where the original mix was made.

The real tragedy is how Quaker Oats completely dismissed descendants of the women who portrayed Aunt Jemima over the years. Im sure if this litigation took place in 2020 it would have a different outcome. I know they are glad that social media didn't blast this story last year.

I also dont like this generic new brand name. Perhaps they could take the opportunity to celebrate other black culture on the packaging, similar to how their cereals feature athletes? It just feels like clinical erasure to me.

Truth: I have been laughing to the point of crying and almost choking, trying to say aloud the "suggestions" aforementioned! "Aunt Fat Ass"!!

land o'lakes got rid of the indigenous and kept the land...

is this colonization of the grocery aisles really going to end well?

will they be asking patti labelle to remove her face too?

They've put Rachel Dolezal as the new face of the product....

Pearl Milling Company sounds like you will open a box of sand and gravel

They must have market-tested the shit out of this name, so it's surprising they didn't come up with something better.

r154 female masturbation

Their new motto:" Eyes nose youz like diss newt prod duck."

[quote]It just feels like clinical erasure to me.

It’s the safe, neutral option. I don’t blame them. People are crazy woke today.

[quote] Where did they get this name? The article didn't explain.

It’s the name of the plantation where the workers mill the crops.

[quote]They were considering for a while to make Roxane Gay the face of the old product ("I'm exhausted--make your own damn pancakes")

Brilliant! 😂😂😂

^Or "I don't know how to make these damn pancakes - DON'T GIVE ME ADVICE!"

R150, the thing that bothers me about this is that back in 1911, they weren’t giving anyone of any color big bucks to have their face on a product. They probably gave them a few bucks to take the photo and that’s it. No royalties. White or black.

In the case of Lillian Richards, she was an employee, and some companies make people sign a contract saying their intellectual property belongs to the company and they won’t be paid extra for anything they invent or do while employed there, to this day. And professional models don’t usually get royalties once they sell their image, so if a fashion model had posed for the label, they probably would have gotten $5 for their image from the photographer and that’s it. The photographer owns the image, not the model. To this day. People in those days were not getting millions for their image, or even thousands. Especially if they were already being paid.

Nancy Green (the woman in the first and last image) got “lifetime employment,” which meant she was paid by the company until her death at 89. Considering she worked there before Social Security or Medicare, that was probably a good deal. And most younger women in that position would have gotten married and quit to be a housewife, which some of them may have.

It’s not reasonable to expect these people to have been compensated the same way they would be today. Nobody would have been, that’s a hundred years ago.

I would have rebranded as Miss Porter’s Sassy Syrup

About models getting paid, Bettie Page got paid a pittance for her original shots from the original photographer in the 1950s. She didn’t own any of those photos and received zero in royalties. Others made millions, while she made a few dollars from each one, one time only.

Later in life, she suffered from severe mental illness and had no income. Hugh Hefner invited her to dinner in 1993, and when he found out she was penniless, he put her in contact with the attorneys for the James Dean and Marilyn Monroe estates. After that, she started receiving royalties and had a good income until her death.

She also never received any money from the bikinis she designed in the 1950s for her photos. Someone stole the designs and produced them, and she never received anything. She didn’t sue either. People didn’t sue back then.

(163) Thank goodness the Year of Billy Porter (2020) is over.

[quote]People didn’t sue back then.

It was a kindler, gentler time.

So after all that time, Aunt Jemima has decided NOW to try to pass?

I don't get this argument that this new name somehow erases either "the real Aunt Jemima" or Lillian Richard.

There was no real Aunt Jemima. The name for the mix came from an old vaudeville song, "Old Aunt Jemima." An actress was hired to play her only eight years after the mix was introduced. Lillian Richard did not start playing Aunt Jemima until 1925--nearly forty years after the product was first introduced.

^If what you wrote is true, that’s a contributing argument against the name change.

Their second option was a close runner up: SupercalifragilisticexpiAUNTYdocious