The family of the woman who once portrayed Aunt Jemima has spoken out against the Quaker Oats' decision to rebrand the pancake syrup.
Vera Harris is a resident of Hawkins, Texas and second cousin to Lillian Richard, who became a brand representative for Aunt Jemima in 1925, reports news station KLTV.
Harris asked that the company and critics of the branding “reconsider just wiping all that away.”
“A lot of people want it removed. We want the world to know that our cousin Lillian was one of the Aunt Jemima’s and she made an honest living,” Harris told the outlet.
“We would ask that you reconsider just wiping all that away. There wasn’t a lot of jobs, especially for black women back in that time. She was discovered by Quaker Oats to be their brand person,” she added.
Harris says the family is proud of Richard’s legacy as a goodwill ambassador in the area. Richard portraying Aunt Jemima for decades as she toured around Texas.
“She made an honest living out of it for a number of years. She toured around Texas,” Harris said.
“She was considered a hero in Hawkins, and we are proud of that. We do not want that history erased,” Harris said.
Now, after Quaker Oats’ vow last week to find a new name and packaging for the Aunt Jemima brand, whose origins the company said “are based on a racial stereotype,” Harris says she wishes people would “not just get rid of everything.”
“I wish we would take a breath and not just get rid of everything. because good or bad, it is our history,” Harris said. “Removing that wipes away a part of me. A part of each of us. We are proud of our cousin.”
Lillian Richard worked for the Quaker Oats company for 23 years. She died in 1956.
LISTEN NOW on the RADIO.COM App
Follow RADIO.COM
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram