Famous rice brand Uncle Ben's have unveiled their new name and logo after they vowed to change it following an intense social media backlash...
Numerous large companies have been forced to change their branding after accusations of racism...
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And the most recent one is Uncle Ben's Rice.The Black Lives Matter movement has taken over the world...
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Since the death of George Floyd, protests for the movement have been happening across the globe in volumes we've never seen before.This kind of police brutality has been happening for centuries now...
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But George's death has sparked an outrage like never before.Thousands upon thousands of people have been taking to the streets in protest...
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And they are all marching for one thing: For the blatant racism and injustice in this country to be brought to an end.Protests have been happening across the pond too...
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Hundreds of thousands of people have been taking to the streets in the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.We are witnessing history in the making...
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And people are continuing to demand justice. But some horrifying things have been emerging from our country's past...Many huge names have been boycotted after accusations of racism have risen against them...
@KelloggsUK, as you are yet to reply to my email - Coco Pops and Rice Krispies have the same compòsition (except fo… https://t.co/CDQRT8j6vc— Fiona Onasanya (@Fiona Onasanya)1592236364.0
Aunt Jemima has been around for 120 years...
And the company was the first-ever to create the instant pancake mix back in 1889. In 1926, Aunt Jemima was bought by Quaker's Oats, and this gave the company huge success with their products which expanded from pancake mixes to syrups.They have been one of our country's most loved products for many years...
Until now, that is. People have been calling out the brand for being inspired by a very racist story.A woman named Kirby took to Twitter this week to expose the truth about Aunt Jemima.
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The video, that was originally posted to TikTok, was captioned "How to make a non-racist breakfast" and it starts by Kirby opening her fridge and taking out an Aunt Jemima box.Kirby instantly gets to the facts...
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"Did you know the name of Aunt Jemima means 'slave men' of the plantation south?" she asks boldly.She then exposed the truth behind the brand's name...
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"Did you know the founder Chris Rutt, a white man, got the name after attending a minstrel show - think blackface."She continued to expose Chris Rutt...
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"Did you also know he hired former-slave Nancy Green... who would go around cooking pancakes and telling people about the 'good old south'."Kirby's video was an instant hit...
@singkirbysing I've never heard of this Pancake brand before today, but now I know I don't want any of that shit— WhoCanPeliCan (@WhoCanPeliCan)1592366949.0
Many are feeling relieved that the brand has been exposed for what it truly stands for...
@NBCNews Great example of how supremacy is ingrained from birth. Folks who and being sarcastic are PART OF THE PROB… https://t.co/9FU0lDkEf8— BeeYeaux (@BeeYeaux)1592392904.0
But the biggest question being asked...
There’s no way y’all looked at a Aunt Jemima box and had no inklings of racism. There’s no way. https://t.co/krciGNlldz— KAYA NOVA (@KAYA NOVA)1592351731.0
Aunt Jemima has been a stereotype of black people for years now...
There’s a book written about this called “Slave in a Box: The Strange Career of Aunt Jemima” The Mammy stereotype… https://t.co/zNe00owkSR— KAYA NOVA (@KAYA NOVA)1592352842.0
After the immense backlash...
Quaker Oats announced that the image of Aunt Jemima will be removed from all packaging and the brand’s name will be… https://t.co/Dh436xAqdw— TODAY (@TODAY)1592393996.0
The company spoke out about their decision...
People legit waking up to die on the hill claiming Aunt Jemima isn't rooted in racism when ads like this exist. https://t.co/HZt2YU2Gwj— Susan E-2B (@Susan E-2B)1592402176.0
Kroepfl said the company has worked to "update" the brand to be "appropriate and respectful" but it realized the changes were insufficient.
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Quaker said the new packaging will begin to appear in the fall of 2020, and a new name for the foods will be announced at a later date.Even though this is the change that our society desperately needs...
@raiaah_ Don’t forget these https://t.co/LUiItWG2mG— krysta (@krysta)1592337853.0
And one of those companies was Uncle Ben's.
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The rice brand has been around since the 1940s and it has cemented itself as one of the most popular here in America, as well as in the United Kingdom.According to Uncle Ben's website, the logo and name are based on a black Texan rice farmer known as "Uncle Ben."
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Frank Brown, a maître d'hôtel at a Chicago restaurant, agreed to pose as the face of Uncle Ben for the painting which became the company's logo.The heat has been building on Uncle Ben's to make a similar move to the one Aunt Jemima made...
And it seems that they've finally done just that.The company announced they would be making some changes to the brand.
We have a responsibility to help end racial injustices. We’re listening to consumers, especially in the Black commu… https://t.co/y956l71wRA— Ben's Original USA (@Ben's Original USA)1592437788.0
The brand will be evolving overtime...
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And its parent company Mars has said it'll be making changes to the brand including its "visual brand identity."There seems to be a divide in opinion about this decision, however.
@UncleBens Just tell the truth. Ben was a black rice farmer in Texas renowned for his harvest. White businessmen bo… https://t.co/pT99Vt9jmQ— Abra Lee (@Abra Lee)1592448824.0
But some people feel this is a step backward...
@UncleBens Is this not a step backwards? By removing the image you’re essentially saying that black people cant be… https://t.co/vcvYmMyhgY— nia preston (@nia preston)1592476983.0
But the one thing that the majority of people have called for...
@UncleBens I appreciate that you are finally looking into changing your image and would encourage you to hire and o… https://t.co/NLSp6vaY9C— Laura Wenham (@Laura Wenham)1592446384.0
Now, the company's new name and logo have been revealed.
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Weeks after vowing to make a change, the brand's new chapter has officially begun.It's not too much of a change...
Uncle Ben's will now be known as "Ben's Original."The announcement was made along with what appears to be as new logo.
We listened to our associates and our customers and the time is right to make meaningful changes across society," said Fiona Dawson, Global President for Mars Food, multisales, and global customers.She continued:
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“When you are making these changes, you are not going to please everyone. But it’s about doing the right thing, not the easy thing."Reactions to the new logo have been fairly mixed...
@UncleBens Wow, now the world is a much better place. Great job! Not gonna lie, this shit is embarrassing. These aren't real issues.— Jason░Rocco (@Jason░Rocco)1600864828.0
@UncleBens Congrats you've singlehandedly ended racism and police brutality.— Chris Bush (@Chris Bush)1600864501.0
@UncleBens Thank you.— Reese 🌼 Indiana Wildflower (@Reese 🌼 Indiana Wildflower)1600866774.0
@UncleBens Lots of people angry about rice this morning.— Nathan von Koblenz (@Nathan von Koblenz)1600869431.0
@UncleBens You gotta update that the Twitter name homie. Now that you released the rebrand.— Ty_Mor (@Ty_Mor)1600863080.0
@UncleBens Great business move. This is a massive privately held company that understands American demographics hav… https://t.co/GE3KanckWh— Chuck Wilson (@Chuck Wilson)1600865628.0
@UncleBens Guess I’ll eat something else. Bye Uncle Ben— PATRIOT Raymond Reddington (@PATRIOT Raymond Reddington)1600865812.0
@UncleBens It seems y'all are worrying about the wrong thing guys😒— Dannydude (@Dannydude)1600866094.0
@UncleBens "we listened" but who was talking??— Douglas Bagwell (@Douglas Bagwell)1600867587.0
Take a look at the logo below.
We listened. And we learned. Moving forward, Uncle Ben's will be known as Ben’s Original™. Read our full statement… https://t.co/XbhSe340Hv— Ben's Original USA (@Ben's Original USA)1600856401.0