AirWalter Loc: Tipp City, Ohio

Well, I hope I posted enough things to get peoples minds off of all the crummy news for awhile. Have you heard yet today that Quaker foods is doing away with the friendly Aunt Jemima picture on their pancake mix and syrup? Yep, it's true, there goes another one of my childhood memory's. Will this nonsense ever stop?

https://biggeekdad.com/2020/06/cat-true-facts/

josquin1 Loc: Massachusetts

It's not nonsense. Even as a child I wondered about Aunt Jemima and how this made African Americans feel. All these little things add up to the weight that breaks the backs of a people.

domcomm Loc: Denver, CO

I always thought it was an honor to her, because she was a great cook!

Beowulf Loc: Aquidneck Island, RI

In addition, the producer of Uncle Ben's rice products has announced intention to change the logo and name of its products. Uncle Ben and Aunt Jemima are holdovers from a time when southerners preferred "aunt"and "uncle" as referents to older s***es, rather than "Mr." and "Mrs." which would convey greater stature.

AirWalter Loc: Tipp City, Ohio

Well, that just shows where your mind was.

Najataagihe

You might want to ask an old "Southerner" (a term which is also offensive, by the way) before you expose your ignorance concerning our customs.


"Aunt" and "Uncle", when not applied to relatives, are informal titles denoting endearment, respect, and acceptance as part of the extended family, used by the children or when speaking to the children about their elder.

Adults of the same generation may address each other as "Sister" or "Brother" to denote familial acceptance, whether the parties are related or not.

In either case, neither age nor skin tan has anything to do with it.


"Mr." and "Mrs." are formal titles given to anyone you meet, until their preferred title is discovered.

In most places, they are used when they have no title.


There are still places where, if they have no other title, they are addressed by their occupation, similar to the custom in the Middle Ages.

Thus, you might have "Mayor Johnston", Colonel Higgenbotham, Head Dog-Catcher Smith, Assistant Grave-Digger Jones, Pastor Germano, Town Drunk Hester, etc.

At all times, the complete title is used, no matter how cumbersome and EVERYONE is assigned a title.

There are fewer and fewer places, today, that still follow this practice, but there are a few.


"Mr.", "Mrs." or "Miss", followed by the first name is an acceptable form of informal address by children towards an elder who is neither part of the family nor accorded the title of "Aunt" or "Uncle".

Thus, "Uncle Bob" is part of the family, while "Mr. George" is not.


Only trusted people from outside the family are ever granted the title of "Aunt" or "Uncle".

Any s***e (one of which there hasn't been in this country for over 150 years) called "Aunt" or "Uncle" had special status, accepted as a member of the family.



Trivia for the Day:

The proper designation for a person from the South-Eastern section of the United States once called "Dixie" is "American" - without any stinking hyphen.

You're welcome.



Note: The above two sentences immediately prior to this one are hereby clearly labeled as the subtle sarcasm characteristic of this section of the country that indicates a state of being aware of an insult and dismissing it as unworthy of notice - in case you missed its significance.

pendennis

And we always said "yes sir" or "yes ma'am" to any one, even peers.

Beowulf Loc: Aquidneck Island, RI

Since I once lived for several years in Georgia and North Carolina, I did not intentionally mean to disrespect residents of the southeastern states. While living there I was often kidded by neighbbors who would say things like “we southernors will never understand you yankees.” So I apologize for any unintended disrespect.

I remembered reading a NY Times article around 2006-7 (while in GA) regarding the business of “aunt” and “uncle” with regard to elderly African-Americans during the heyday of s***e ownership. A brief google search turned up this excerpt referencing the Times article:

However, the imagery evokes a servant and uses a title that reflects how white Southerners “once used ‘uncle’ and ‘aunt’ as honorifics for older b****s because they refused to say ‘Mr.’ and ‘Mrs.,'” according to a 2007 New York Times article.

AirWalter Loc: Tipp City, Ohio

And that is that!

Najataagihe

Need I say more?

Since when would an outside reporter know more about local customs than a local?


By the way, just to be clear, you can't possibly insult me, as I refuse to take offense.

One has to CHOOSE to be insulted.

It can't be forced upon them.


Life is too darned short to be ruining it by walking around with a wood-chip on your shoulder, daring someone to knock it off.

I am not about to waste my time with that kind of nonsense.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

Yes Sir (as we say in the South).

Schoee Loc: Europe

Thanks for taking the time with that long explanation. I found it really interesting.

machia Loc: NJ

As corporations and elected officials give into this madness we are now a society that walks on glass waiting for the new offending term, photo, statue, song or wh**ever to be listed in the political correctness playbook.
This will only polarize us further as we begin an era of hyper-sensitivity.

sb Loc: Florida's East Coast

You mean that he was growing up to consider others?

Tex-s

I have to disagree. For all of my lifetime I've been told that black people, indigenous people, Asians, Polynesians, etc were under-represented as mayors, reps, governors, actors, TV anchors, and virtually absent from toys, games, and public marketing images. (Can YOU say 'black Barbie?') Until the last 7 minutes it was a crime against POC's to NOT include them as action heroes, action figures, and Mr. Potatohead base features. It's only, as I said, the last 7 minutes that it's a 180 degree reversal. My theory is that people of color have run out of legitimate claims of EXclusion, overall, and that the political left and media, but I repeat myself, have to try a new approach to keep all these subsets of Americans feeling oppressed.

Aunt Jemima was a part of every family in my home town, even though there was nowhere near a 10% black population in my home town. Are we REALLY saying that an advertising figure who actually pierced white media and made 100% of the white kids in my town embrace a product associated with a black woman is suddenly a bad thing? No, we are not. We are saying that the outrage mob is running out of narratives.

And FYI, my entire family already will not be buying Land o Lakes products ever again. We'll save our spending for companies that at least pretend to value liberty and the freedom of speech. So, we now get to avoid supporting Quaker Oats......