The breakfast foods brand formerly known as Aunt Jemima has a new name and likeness, courtesy of parent company PepsiCo. and its subsidiary Quaker Oats.
AP Photo/Donald King
Last year, it was announced by Quaker Oats that they would be removing the name and image of Aunt Jemima from their syrup, engaging in a rebrand after the parent company determined, likely through some crazy focus group, that Aunt Jemima was racist. Well, not that she was racist, but that her image was based on a “racial stereotype” that did not accurately represent the interests of the black community. Now, while Quaker has made some strides in promises of contributions to the black community, I believe that their new rebrand is either completely tone-deaf or more likely a complete screw-up by brand professionals.