Unless you’re talking specifically to an anti racist audience, you really gotta explain what revisionist history mammy meant for those who want to whitewash the antebellum south.
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orcrist@lemm.ee 4 months agoAsk yourself why Aunt Jemima was chosen long ago. What stereotype did she represent? What is her back story supposed to be? … That is the obvious starting point.
I don’t think it’s hard to connect the dots on this one.
As a general position, hiring a minority to produce art doesn’t mean that all uses of the art are positive.
roguetrick@lemmy.world 4 months ago
Cryophilia@lemmy.world 4 months ago
An old motherly Southern Black woman. Reminds me of any number of real life people I’ve known. The whole “depicting Black people is racism” thing was cooked up by and for white people.
orcrist@lemm.ee 4 months ago
Well that’s kind of funny. You’re right that white people cooked up her image. And they did so specifically with the idea that she would fit that stereotype of the older slave woman who has always worked in the kitchen, and is happy to do so, and because of that she’s really good at cooking.
By the way, the word “aunt” was not used to be respectful, but rather specifically to be disrespectful. That particular nuance has faded over time, but the history is real, and once you learn it you can’t forget it.
The sad thing is, you could have inferred this without looking it up. You could have asked yourself why they didn’t use a cartoon character of a white woman, with a white sounding name. The fact that you didn’t, and that you didn’t bother doing a web search, shows how much you want to avoid seeing racism in the modern world. But just because you don’t want to look at it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Reality is not that kind, my friend.
Finally, don’t take my word for it. Ask the company itself why they changed the name. They have documentation on the subject.
Cryophilia@lemmy.world 4 months ago
The company changed to to avoid being targeted by a mob of stupid people, obviously.
You can “learn” anything, but it doesn’t make it true. All that crap coming out of your mouth? White guilt bullshit. Trying to find racism under every rock. Actually erasing Black history (ie actually doing racist things) out of a good-hearted but empty-headed attempt to avoid racism (or even worse, the appearance of racism). It sickens me. Stay in your lane.