AUNT JEMIMA PANCAKE MIX, SYRUP BRAND FINALLY GETS A NEW NAME
Pearl Milling Company will be on packages in June
Aunt Jemima is making her last batch of pancakes.
Quaker Oats said Tuesday that its Aunt Jemima brand pancake mix and syrup will be renamed Pearl Milling Company. Aunt Jemima products will continue to be sold until June, when the packaging will officially change over.
Quaker Oats, a division of PepsiCo, had announced last June that it would retire the Aunt Jemima brand, saying the character’s origins are “based on a racial stereotype.” The smiling Aunt Jemima logo was inspired by the 19th century “mammy” minstrel character, a Black woman content to serve her white masters. A former slave, Nancy Green, became the first face of the pancake products in 1890.
Quaker Oats bought the
Aunt Jemima brand in 1925 and had updated the logo over the years in an effort to remove the negative stereotypes. But in the cultural reckoning that followed last summer’s Black Lives Matter protests, Quaker decided to change the name altogether. Other brands, like Uncle Ben’s rice, followed.
Quaker said Pearl Milling Company was founded in 1888 in St. Joseph,
Mo., and was the originator of self-rising pancake mix. While the brand will be new to store shelves, the boxes and bottles of syrup will still have the familiar red packaging of Aunt Jemima.
Quaker said it sought input from customers, employees and external cultural experts as it developed the new brand name.
Quaker said it is also donating $1 million to groups that empower Black women and girls as part of the Pearl Milling Company rollout.
Dear Abby: I enjoy babysitting for the children of family and friends. But while I have nothing to hide, I hate how everyone seems to have inside cameras. I feel like I’m in a fishbowl, like if I let their kids veg in front of the TV or the computer, I’ll be judged as lazy.
I also hate having my picture taken, so the idea of being on a live feed all day is off-putting.
Do I ask them to turn off the cameras, or stop babysitting? I can’t be the only person who is uncomfortable being monitored all day like a caged animal. What’s a good way of handling this?
Monitored In Ohio Dear Monitored: People usually have cameras inside their home for security reasons, and so they will have a warning or evidence in case of a break-in. Parents and pet owners enjoy peace of mind knowing they can periodically check to see how their precious angels are doing. The intent is not to spy on you.
If you feel you are being watched excessively, ask the parents how they think you are doing.
Unless they complain about your performance, a good way of handling this would be to simply accept the situation, or restrict your babysitting to homes that are camera-free.
Dear Abby: I have had a crush on a man since we were in our teens. We’re now in our mid-40s.
Both of us ended longterm relationships about a year ago. We have stayed in contact every now and then, but only as friends — more like family. He was best friends with my beloved late uncle.
We have decided to meet, with sex at the forefront of our thoughts. How do I prepare myself to go into this with a sex-only mind frame?
Do you think this could damage our 30-year friendship?
Nervous In Oregon Dear Nervous: It has been my observation that men and women view sexual relationships differently. Women often let their emotions get involved. Men can more easily separate the two. It could ABSOLUTELY damage your 30-year friendship if what he expects is a casual friends-with-benefits relationship and at some point you decide you need more from this man you have had a crush on since your teens.
Dear Abby: My 25-yearold daughter has stopped talking to me. She said I need counseling to discuss the abuse during her childhood. I asked, “What abuse?” She won’t say! I can’t think of any. She was never spanked. She was given anything she asked for and allowed to join any club or sport she was interested in.
The only thing she finally mentioned was that my husband and I had arguments. We didn’t argue often. I’m at a loss.
Should I step back and leave her alone? I send texts and call her once a week. Most go unanswered. When she does answer, she asks if I have started counseling. Please advise.
Cut Off In Indiana Dear Cut Off: Tell your daughter that you are open to counseling, but only if it is joint counseling with her to figure out why there is such a disparity in your — and her — memories of her childhood. If you do, it may — I can’t guarantee — resolve what’s happening now.
Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Write Dear Abby at www.DearAbby.com or P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.