Uncle Ben, the fictional spokesperson for Uncle Bens Rice, has apparently died. So has Aunt Jemima. At least, that’s according to the verified Twitter account for MSNBC news. I say “apparently” because I don’t know if a fictional character is able to “die.” But, that’s the reality of the marketing world we live in.
Each Sunday morning, I’ll wake up and I’ll have my morning breakfast which consists of toast and Land-o-Lakes butter (oops sorry we got rid of the American Indian and Land-o-Lakes butter) but I can still have my Lucky-Charms cereal. Sorry if offended the Irish, but you can still buy Lucky-Charms at my local grocery store at Market Basket… at least for now.
This is not to be taken out of context. I understand words and symbols hurt, and like mankind itself, marketing needs to evolve and adapt to the new realities of life. I get it.
I know this sounds selfish, But I’m going to miss the old cereal commercials of my childhood. Like Mikey Likes It Life Cereal, I guess in those days we weren’t thinking how we could have offended the transgender community.
