Aunt Jemima Under Fire After Brand’s Racist Origins Resurface

In the wake of George Floyd’s death at the hands of Minneapolis officers, protests have swept across the country, bringing attention to the Black Lives Matter movement while also shining a spotlight on systemic racism and police brutality. With a greater awareness raised over the past few weeks, companies with ties to racism in one way or another are under a microscope.

The latest is Quaker Oats’ Aunt Jemima, which traces its roots back to 1889. The mascot was inspired by a former slave named Nancy Green, who was to look like a “Mammy” caricature. According to the Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia, the “Mammy” image served as the “political, social, and economic interests of mainstream white America.” An opinion column in The New York Times from 2015 by Riche Richardson called for the company to remove the image as it was linked to “Southern racism. She mentioned how the “Aunt Jemima” name came from a minstrel song, “Old Aunt Jemima.” White performers performed minstrel songs in blackface. In regards to the “Mammy” caricature, Richardson explained how the image portrayed a “devoted and submissive servant” to her white owners.

With much more attention placed on racism with statues in some states being being removed, and major sports like NASCAR banning Confederate flags at its events, social media has finally begun to take notice of what has been sitting on the grocery shelf all of these years. Here is a look at what is being said about the Aunt Jemima brand across Twitter.

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