The aunt jemima logo changed six times before it was. The most updated version of the brand image added pearl earrings and a white collar to the aunt jemima character according to chicago tribune. Aunt jemima s freedom was negated or revoked in this role because of the character s persona as a plantation slave not a free black woman employed as a domestic.
More aunt jemima brand is changing its name and removing the namesake black character unfortunately manring wrote rutt and underwood were unable to sell their new aunt jemima breakfast product. In 1889 the creators of aunt jemima charles rutt and charles underwood sold the company to r t davis who soon found nancy green in chicago. Nancy green was born into slavery in 1834 in montgomery county kentucky.
In 1890 a former slave named nancy green was hired to be the spokesperson for aunt jemima brand food products. On wednesday chicago based quaker foods announced it would eliminate the aunt jemima brands in response to civil unrest in the wake of the death of george floyd an african american man who died may 25 when his neck was pinned by the knee. Larnell evans sr s great grandmother anna short harrington portrayed the aunt jemima character from 1935 to 1954 the syracuse post standard reported.
Davis mill company was renamed the aunt jemima mills company in 1914 and eventually sold to the quaker oats company in 1926. The popularity of aunt jemima inspired many promotional giveaway and mail in premiums including dolls breakfast club pins dishware and recipe booklets that remain very collectible today. Nancy green march 4 1834 august 30 1923 was a storyteller cook activist and the first of many african american models hired to promote a corporate trademark as aunt jemima the famous aunt jemima recipe was not her recipe but she became the advertising world s first living trademark.
The character of aunt jemima is an invitation to white people to indulge in a fantasy of enslaved people and by extension all of black america as submissive self effacing loyal. The brand name aunt jemima which quaker oats officials admitted this week is based on a racial stereotype was derived from an african american mammy character from a popular minstrel. Although depictions vary over time they are similar to the common attire and physical features of mammy characters throughout history.
Her skin is dark and dewy with a pearly white smile. Aunt jemima is based on the common enslaved mammy archetype a plump black woman wearing a headscarf who is a devoted and submissive servant.
