The Aunt Jemima brand, known for pancake mix and syrups, will be renamed and get a new logo, according to NBC News.
Aunt Jemima's parent company, Quaker Oats, released a statement saying in part, “We recognize Aunt Jemima’s origins are based on a racial stereotype. While work has been done over the years to update the brand in a manner intended to be appropriate and respectful, we realize those changes are not enough.”
The company added "We are starting by removing the image and changing the name. We will continue the conversation by gathering diverse perspectives from both our organization and the Black community to further evolve the brand and make it one everyone can be proud to have in their pantry.”
The image of Aunt Jemima will be removed by the end of 2020 and a new name will happen later.
Dr. Riché Richardson, an associate professor in Africana Studies and Research Center at Cornell University, wrote in the New York Times in 2015 that the logo is "an outgrowth of Old South plantation nostalgia grounded in an idea about the 'mammy.'"
The Aunt Jemima brand has attracted criticism in the past and the criticism was renewed yesterday on Twitter.
Quaker Oats also announced it will donate at least $5 million over the next 5 years to “create meaningful, ongoing support and engagement in the Black community.”