# Fill me in on Mrs Butterworths syrup **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 18, 2020, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892 "2020-06-18T10:26:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Surreal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@Surreal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surreal)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2020, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/21 "2020-07-07T20:22:47Z")
**1980** : In 40 years we’ll have colonized the moon, and we’ll all be piloting flying cars. **2020** : This syrup is racist. ---
**Author:** ![mundylion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mundylion/32/3604_2.png) [@mundylion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mundylion)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2020, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/22 "2020-07-07T20:40:20Z")
I agree that Amos is different from Jemima because he was/is a real person. But Jemima and Crocker seem the same to me, both fictitious, one a friendly person who nourishes people, sets a good table, the other the neighborhood lady who is a great cook. Only real difference is one is black, one is white. It looks like Cleveland will lose their Indians, keeping up with the times. Los Angeles might reconsider their Dodgers as well, most of them were immigrants living in Brooklyn. Can’t be too careful. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2020, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/23 "2020-07-07T20:48:43Z")
> [@mundylion](#): > > Only real difference is one is black, one is white. A little more than that. Jemima was a blackface character, not just an ordinary black woman. The origin is mixed up with racist imagery, even if that part has, over the years, been set aside. The character was cleansed, but the origin still exists. Were it up to me, I’d forgive and forget, and keep Jemima as a “mascot,” same as Betty. But it matters to a lot of people, and it doesn’t really matter one hang in hell to me, so let her go. My grandmother had golliwog dolls, too. It was a different century. ---
**Author:** ![Powers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Powers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Powers)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2020, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/24 "2020-07-07T20:59:26Z")
> [@mundylion](#): > > But Jemima and Crocker seem the same to me, both fictitious, one a friendly person who nourishes people, sets a good table, the other the neighborhood lady who is a great cook. Only real difference is one is black, one is white. … and that one is based on a racist caricature. Did you somehow miss that part of my post? Powers &8^] ---
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2020, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/25 "2020-07-07T21:37:18Z")
The last remaining “Sambo’s” is changing their name. [California restaurant agrees to a name change amid national unrest | CNN](https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/06/us/restaurant-name-trnd/index.html) ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2020, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/26 "2020-07-08T01:45:32Z")
> [@mundylion](#): > > I agree that Amos is different from Jemima because he was/is a real person. But Jemima and Crocker seem the same to me, both fictitious, one a friendly person who nourishes people, sets a good table, the other the neighborhood lady who is a great cook. Only real difference is one is black, one is white. Sorry, even as a child in the '60’s my sisters and I saw Aunt Jemima as a household servant and a somewhat demeaning racial depiction. Our family would occasionally eat at the Aunt Jemima’s Kitchen restaurant and we’d ask our parents about it, and why the company used that image. If it bothers people, it really doesn’t matter whether you can see it or not. But you could at least try. Honestly, if a 10-year-old could spot it 50 years ago, I’m confident you can, too. ---
**Author:** ![mundylion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mundylion/32/3604_2.png) [@mundylion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mundylion)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2020, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/27 "2020-07-08T04:49:24Z")
Didn’t miss it. Two caricatures, one white and one black. I don’t think that’s a problem but obviously you do. ---
**Author:** ![Powers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Powers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Powers)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2020, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/28 "2020-07-08T13:49:47Z")
It’s not “one white and one black”; it’s “one racist and one not”. Are you intentionally refusing to understand that point? Why are you so resistant to the idea of racist caricature? ---
**Author:** ![Dorjan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dorjan/32/12440_2.png) [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2020, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/29 "2020-07-08T13:53:16Z")
He’s being deliberately obtuse. Don’t waste your time. ---
**Author:** ![Powers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Powers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Powers)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2020, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/30 "2020-07-08T14:05:27Z")
It puzzles me why anyone uninterested in honest discussion would come to this forum, in particular, and proceed to be deliberately obtuse. Powers &8^] ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2020, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/31 "2020-07-08T14:09:35Z")
> [@Keeve](#): > > But maybe that’s only because my caucasian skin blinds me to such things. Between her commercial voice and the “Mrs Butterworth” name, I always thought of her as some British housekeeper/nanny type figure. [Edit: not to imply she had a British accent, rather she sounded stereotypically white to me] That said, I don’t care if they change her depiction or name or whatever. Life’s too short to get mad over companies modifying their advertising campaigns or pretending that it affects my “culture”. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2020, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/32 "2020-07-08T21:04:38Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > Between her commercial voice and the “Mrs Butterworth” name, I always thought of her as some British housekeeper/nanny type figure. I always thought of her as Aunt Bea from the Andy Griffith Show. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2020, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/33 "2020-07-09T00:01:39Z")
Could be worse…my association is Mrs. Butterworth from The Prisoner, polite and British, and nasty and devious and manipulative and sly. But cooks like an angel! ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/779978/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats2)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2020, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/34 "2020-07-17T15:56:15Z")
I always thought Mrs Butterworth was Caucasian, and have never heard of this Butterfly McQueen story. Even in her older days, Ms McQueen was not rubenesque like the bottle portrays. Another correction: In “Gone with the Wind”, the character of Prissy was NOT a young mother. She has no children, but does serve as nurse to Scarlett’s children. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2020, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/35 "2020-07-17T18:59:40Z")
> [@Two\_Many\_Cats2](#): > > the character of Prissy was NOT a young mother. She has no children, but does serve as nurse to Scarlett’s children. Nurse, yes. But she don’t know nothing about birthin babies. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/4K75hhrc1mU/hqdefault.jpg "Birthin babies") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4K75hhrc1mU) ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2020, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/36 "2020-07-17T19:27:24Z")
> [@lobotomyboy63](#): > > She was voiced by a white woman back in the day—the actress who played Clara Edwards on Andy Griffith. I never used that brand of syrup, but being voiced by a white woman means nothing. Amos and Andy on the radio were voiced by white actors. They couldn’t get away with doing that for a TV show. Just consider the current effort to cast Black voice actors in Black roles. That wasn’t done in the past. ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2020, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/37 "2020-07-17T19:48:45Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > I never used that brand of syrup, but being voiced by a white woman means nothing. Amos and Andy on the radio were voiced by white actors. They couldn’t get away with doing that for a TV show. > Just consider the current effort to cast Black voice actors in Black roles. That wasn’t done in the past. Reviewing some comments from upthread… [quote=“John\_DiFool, post:5, topic:855892, full:true”] I would have sworn that, when an ad series animated her many moons ago, that she spoke in a stereotypical NE US Causcasian accent.[/quote] > [@Keeve](#): > > My memory of Mrs Butterworth, as a logo, is a clear plastic figurine filled with syrup. That is certainly a dark brown color, but directly attributable to to the syrup, not skin color. > [@CalMeacham](#): > > Again, the earliest adverts for the syrup clearly depict the sentient food appropriating the persona of an old white woman. > [@CookingWithGas](#): > > I think it was just a bottle in the shape of a matronly woman and anything else was projected onto it by consumers. > [@Powers](#): > > Just two problems with this. Butterfly McQueen was not obese (though Mrs. Butterworth isn’t either), and Mrs. Butterworth does not wear a headscarf. Her hair is pulled back in a bun like a stereotypical white grandmother. > [@Jophiel](#): > > Between her commercial voice and the “Mrs Butterworth” name, I always thought of her as some British housekeeper/nanny type figure. [Edit: not to imply she had a British accent, rather she sounded stereotypically white to me] > [@Trinopus](#): > > Could be worse…my association is Mrs. Butterworth from The Prisoner, polite and British, and nasty and devious and manipulative and sly. > [@Two\_Many\_Cats2](#): > > I always thought Mrs Butterworth was Caucasian, and have never heard of this Butterfly McQueen story. Even in her older days, Ms McQueen was not rubenesque like the bottle portrays. So a white woman shouldn’t provide the voice of a character whom a lot of us thought was white and whose race has apparently not been proven to be otherwise? ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892/38 "2020-08-12T04:07:56Z")
> [@mundylion](#): > > Two caricatures, one white and one black. I don’t think that’s a problem but obviously you do. Let me help you out: > **[New Racism Museum Reveals the Ugly Truth Behind Aunt Jemima](https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2012/04/new-racism-museum-reveals-the-ugly-truth-behind-aunt-jemima/256185/)** > > David Pilgrim has spent decades collecting racist pictures, signs, and knickknacks. Now he’s sharing his collection with the world. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fill-me-in-on-mrs-butterworths-syrup/855892.md?page=1)