12 racist brands, mascots, and logos that were considered just another part of American life

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12 racist brands, mascots, and logos that were considered just another part of American life
  • Quaker Oats announced Wednesday it will reimagine its Aunt Jemima brand of syrup and pancake mix.
  • Aunt Jemima was fashioned after a "mammy" caricature, a racist depiction that portrays Black female slaves as smiling, happy homemakers for white people.
  • A company spokesperson said Quaker Oats, which makes the product, recognizes that "Aunt Jemima's origins are based on a racial stereotype."
  • Aunt Jemima is not the only problematic brand that's been a staple in American culture.

Quaker Oats, a subsidiary of PepsiCo, announced Wednesday that it will retire its Aunt Jemima brand of syrup and pancake mix, saying the company recognizes that "Aunt Jemima's origins are based on a racial stereotype."

In the late 1800s, the Missouri newspaper editor Chris L. Rutt decided to name his brand of self-rising flour after "Aunt Jemima," a song performed by minstrel actors. A former slave named Nancy Green was later hired to portray Aunt Jemima as a "mammy," a racist caricature that depicts female slaves as smiling, happy homemakers for white families.

"We recognize Aunt Jemima's origins are based on a racial stereotype," Kristin Kroepfl, vice president and chief marketing officer of Quaker Foods North America, said in a press release. "As we work to make progress toward racial equality through several initiatives, we also must take a hard look at our portfolio of brands and ensure they reflect our values and meet our consumers' expectations."

Kroepfl said the company has worked to "update" the brand over the years to be "appropriate and respectful," but it realized the changes were insufficient.

Hours after Quaker Oats announced it was changing its Aunt Jemima logo, Mars, which makes the boxed rice product Uncle Ben's, said it plans to change the product's "brand identity." Uncle Ben's was named after a Black domestic servant.

These two products, however, are hardly the only racist ones to have been a staple in American culture. Here are several other offensive logos and mascots that have existed throughout history.

Katie Richards, Kim Bhasin, Aaron Taube, and Karlee Weinmann contributed to an earlier version of this article.

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The Washington Redskins, 1933-Present

The Washington Redskins, 1933-Present
Washington Redskins quarterback Dwayne Haskins (7) hands the ball off to running back Adrian Peterson (26) during the first half of an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2019, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus) Associated Press

Sports team: The NFL's Washington Redskins
In 2014, the US Patent and Trademark Office canceled six trademarks belonging to the Washington Redskins, including the team's old logo, after finding the name disparaged Native Americans. The word "redskin" is a racist slang term for America's indigenous people.

The Washington Redskins were founded in 1932 as the Boston Braves. The team changed its name to the Redskins in 1933.

The team's owners and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell have defended the use of the word and the logo, which depicts a Native American. In the wake of PepsiCo's decision to rename its Aunt Jemima products, however, more are calling for change for the football team.

Source: Business Insider, The Guardian, The Washington Post

Chief Blackjack, 1928-1987

Chief Blackjack, 1928-1987
SportsLogos.net

Organization: St. John's University

The Queens, New York-based college began calling its sports teams the Redmen in the early 1920s and adopted the Chief Blackjack mascot in 1928 when two students found a statue of him outside a cigar store.

The school used a variant of the logo you see here up until 1987, finally ditching the Redmen name in 1994 after pressure from Native-American groups. The school's teams are now known as the Red Storm.

Source: St. John's University, Jay Rosenstein Productions, New York Times

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Rastus, 1901-1925

Rastus, 1901-1925
Wikimedia Commons

Company: Cream of Wheat

Since the 1880s, Rastus has been widely considered a pejorative term associated with black men. Through advertisements from the first part of the 20th century, the smiling chef is depicted as childlike and uneducated.

Cream of Wheat took Rastus off the box in 1925 in favor of a portrait of Frank L. White, a Chicago chef who remains on the box to this day (pictured above).

Source: The Jim Crow Museum Of Racist Memorabilia, Adweek

Miss Chiquita, 1944-Present

Miss Chiquita, 1944-Present
Woman's Day

Company: Chiquita

Originally a sexy banana, the mascot is now a sexy banana seller. She wears a Carmen-Miranda-esque fruit hat that gives an exotic and idealized image of the tropics.

Source: Chiquita

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Syracuse University's Big Chief Bill Orange, 1931-1978

Syracuse University's Big Chief Bill Orange, 1931-1978
Felipe Ortega Flickr, cc

Organization: Syracuse University

Before the private university looked to Otto the Orange for a boost of school spirit, Syracuse University's mascot was Big Chief Bill Orange, the Saltine Warrior.

A statue of the Saltine Warrior was erected on the campus in 1951 and still stands today. In 1978, students in the Syracuse community and members of a Native-American organization protested the use of this mascot.

Eventually the Saltine Warrior was retired along with the costume worn by the mascot.

Source: Syracuse University Archives

Frito Bandito, 1967-1971

Frito Bandito, 1967-1971
By lucyhuto on YouTube

Company: Fritos

Speaking broken English and robbing unsuspecting bystanders, the Frito Bandito was an armed Mexican conman with a disheveled look and a gold tooth.

Responding to pressure from the Mexican American Anti-Defamation Committee, the snack-food giant cleaned up Frito Bandito's look. But combed hair and a friendlier expression didn't quite cut it.

Fritos ditched the cartoon, and a less controversial band of cowboys, the Muncha Bunch, replaced him.

Source: "On the Media"

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Land O'Lakes butter, 1928-2020

Land O'Lakes butter, 1928-2020
REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

Land O'Lakes recently changed the packaging for its consumer products to remove the image of a Native American woman with a feather in her hair.

The change was implemented ahead of the company's 100th anniversary. The new packaging is very similar to the original, save for the removal of the Native American woman. It also added the phrase "farmer-owned" above the Land O'Lakes name.

Source: Business Insider

Eskimo Pie, 1921-Present

Eskimo Pie, 1921-Present
By mayhem on Flickr

Company: Cadbury Pascall

The ice cream treat named for a North American tribe became the subject of controversy in 2009 when a Canadian Inuit woman said the product name insulted her heritage.

A slow-moving and largely unpublicized battle in North America's northland has quietly raged on against the use of the word "Eskimo" to describe people with Inuit heritage.

But "Eskimo" is so ingrained that even the occasional blasts of bad publicity have failed to persuade manufacturer Cadbury Pascall to consider a new name.

Source: The Toronto Star

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Chief Wahoo, 1947-Present

Chief Wahoo, 1947-Present
By soul_motor on Flickr

Company: Cleveland Indians, Major League Baseball

Despite decades of criticism and lobbying for his removal, Chief Wahoo is still the mascot for Major League Baseball's Cleveland Indians.

Still, the once-untouchable landscape of sports mascots is bending. Now that the Redskins lost their trademark, the Cleveland Plain Dealer is asking whether Chief Wahoo should be next.

Source: The Christian Science Monitor

Sambo's, 1957-1981

Sambo's, 1957-1981
By Thomas Hawk on Flickr

Company: Sambo's

When restaurateurs Sam Battistone and Newell Bohnett launched Sambo's, they insisted its name had nothing to do with a children's book of the time, "The Story of Little Black Sambo."

But the businessmen capitalized on the association, with "Little Black Sambo"-inspired decor.

In the late 1970s, the chain had 1,200 locations in 47 states. After some backlash, a name change and an attempt at an identity makeover, it went bankrupt in 1981.

Source: Slate

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Funny Face Drink Mix, 1964-1965

Funny Face Drink Mix, 1964-1965
By ToonORama on YouTube

Company: Pillsbury

When Kool-Aid started dominating the refreshment market, Pillsbury decided to create its own competing brand: Funny Face.

Injun Orange and Chinese Cherry are actual varieties of Funny Face, and the racist overtones didn't stop at the names: Caricatures accompanied each of the flavors.

Pillsbury eventually swapped out its original varieties for Jolly Olly Orange and Choo Choo Cherry on its own.

Source: Slate

Crazy Horse malt liquor, 1992-2001

Crazy Horse malt liquor, 1992-2001
40ozMaltLiquor.com

Company: Stroh Brewery

Though the real Crazy Horse may have advocated abstinence, that didn't stop Stroh Brewery from capitalizing on his recognizable name and image — as well as the popular stereotype that Native Americans are heavy drinkers — with this malt beverage.

The company had to backpedal after its product inspired serious outrage from Crazy Horse's estate and the Rosebud Sioux Tribe. In 2001, Stroh apologized in a ceremony on the Rosebud Reservation.

Crazy Horse is still on the market, but under the name Crazy Stallion.

Source: Slate

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