The History of Black People in Advertisements and Commercials

By: Lamont Pearley Jr.

In everyone's day-to-day life, they receive some form of information or entertainment. Whether it is on Television, Youtube, Movies, Billboards, Radio, and Newspapers. Everything I mentioned has one major thing in common, Commercials and Advertisements. The difference between the two is Commercials are usually broadcasted on Television or Radio, and Advertisements are usually Print Media. Commercials have been around since 1941 and Advertisements have been around since the early 1700s. The very first Commercial was aired for the Bulova Watch Company. The ad was only 10 seconds long and cost between 4 - 9 USD. Today, there is a big jump in price points since Commercials aired during the Super Bowl costs 7 Million USD for 30 seconds.  Along with the origins of Commercials, there is a history of Black presentation in advertisements.

Black People weren’t always treated well throughout history and Commercials weren’t the exception. Black people were being used as a way to sell products to people, some examples being Aunt Jemima, Uncle Bens, and The Quintessential Mammy. The Quintessential Mammy is a stereotype depicting Black Women who work in White households and take care of children. She is usually visualized as a fat, dark-skinned woman with a motherly personality. This was the woman that was not only pivotal in the black community, but raised the children of white plantation owners, making her a comfortable image to white America. An article published by raceandethnicity.org explains Ads like “The Gent in the Window” are created as ways to promote their product and make White People feel comfortable reading these ads. From 1830 up until 1941 whenever a black person was shown in an Advertisement it was racially offensive. In 1948 Jax Beer created a Commercial called “Whistle up a party”, the first non-racist African American Commercial. This made an impact on how Black People would become viewed in Ads for the future.

Starting in the 1960’s the Civil Rights Movement made African American Advertisements an important issue to fix. Don Cornelius intentionally utilized black Advertising companies and businesses for Soul Train. An article on Soul Train by theguardian.com quotes Don saying “I want black folks to be seen how black folks should be seen: strong, powerful, and beautiful”. Soul Train was something black families could always look forward to watching, knowing that their people were being represented in a good light. John H. Johnson founded Ebony and Jet Magazines in 1945, the first Black Owned Advertisement company. Ebony and Jet Magazine published an issue in 1955 showing Emmett Till's dead corpse in a casket. During the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s, Ebony and Jet Magazines published multiple magazines about political events involving activists protesting racial violence and advocated for increasing social mobility for African Americans across the diaspora. The peak of Ebony and Jet Magazine was in the 1980s when they had a circulation of 2.3 million. In 2021 the changes that the Civil Rights Movement was fighting for became implemented on products such as Aunt Jemima brand changing to Pearl Milling Company. Uncle Ben’s also changed in 2020 from “Uncle Ben’s” to “Ben’s Original”. Due to the civil unrest that was going on in 2020 the majority of Commercials seen on television were related to Black Lives Matter. Companies and Brands were Advertising Black Lives Matter. For the whole month of February, the NBA had Black Lives Matter merchandise and logos on Jerseys.

A lot of historic black people made significant contributions to how African Americans would be viewed in Advertisements and Commercials. Vince Cullers created his own agency called Vince Cullers Advertising. He created this to help showcase and create Ads geared to African Americans. Then there is Carol H Williams. Williams started working in the Advertising Business in 1969 and created her business in 1986. She is the first African American female Creative Director to be inducted into the American Advertising Federation’s Advertising Hall of Fame in 2017. 

Currently in media, we see black people in Advertisements all the time, at the very least more than in the past. What made this change happen? Many things. What I do know is the stories I mentioned should be talked about more to usher in a solution for equality.

Eenie Meenie Miney Moe and The Ice Cream Truck Song’s Origin

Written By: Samara Pearley

There are many songs used to engage children by parents and teachers. Some are nursery rhymes, and some are jingles for popular kids' products. We all know and love them. However, most have no idea the racist origins of these tunes that became a stamp in households, schools, and communities. This essay will discuss two of the most popular songs. 

"Eenie Meenie Miney Moe" is a song that the kids in my elementary school would sing. We sang the lyrics" Eenie Meenie Miney Moe, Catch a Tiger by the toe. If he hollers, let him go Eenie Meenie Miney Moe." The words make it sound kid-friendly song evolved many times. In my parents' generation, they sang "Eenie Meenie Miney Moe, catch a piggy by the toe." It was sung when kids played tag and other similar games and chose a participant's position in the game, or even when parents were putting babies to bed while playing with their toes. The lyrics and games I just described seem harmless, right? There is another meaning and different words used in the original song during the days of slavery. The original lyrics were "Eenie Meenie Miney Moe, Catch a (n-word) by the toe, if he hollers let him go Eenie Meenie Miney Moe." The alternate version is "Catch a negro by his toe/ If he hollers make him pay/Twenty dollars every day." The concept of the lyrics stems from the slave auction and trade. It is said that the song is based on slave selections and what white slave owners threatened when the enslaved attempted to escape.

Another popular tune in the black community is the ice cream truck song. Although it is not a nursery rhyme, its function is to target children, and it comes from a song called "(N-word) Love a Watermelon Ha! Ha! Ha!" The song was written by an actor named Harry C. Browne and released to the public in 1916. However, the song is much older than its release date. According to an article and podcast on NPR by Theodore R. Johnson, II, published in 2014, "Browne simply used the well-known melody of the early 19th-century song "Turkey in the Straw," which dates to the even older and traditional British song "The (Old) Rose Tree." The tune was brought to America's colonies by Scots-Irish immigrants who settled along the Appalachian Trail and added lyrics that mirrored their new lifestyle." 

Harry stole the melody from a song called "Turkey in the straw." He changed the lyrics to racist stereotypes. For example, some of the lyrics were, "There is nothing like a watermelon for a hungry coon." It was accompanied by images of big-lipped, black-faced African Americans. It was written for traveling Black Minstrel shows, which is what made the song famous. I do not go to the ice cream truck anymore. My family goes to the store to get ice cream now. However, whenever I think about where the song comes from, it makes me upset and uncomfortable. I AM SAD when I see other black kids running to get ice cream as that song is played. Maybe they were not taught the meaning of the song. Now, I listen to the lyrics of songs to know what it means and pay attention to melodies and instrumentals to learn their origin. I recommend you teach your kids the lyrics of what they listen to, whether it is "Eenie Meenie Miney Moe" or "The Ice Cream Truck" song, to understand the origins and meanings behind the lyrics they are singing. 

Book Review of ‘Clean Getaway’ - Chapter book by Nic Stone

Written By: Gideon Weisen

‘Clean Getaway’ is a chapter book by Nic Stone.  The story is about a boy named William “Scoob” Lamar and his G’ma traveling across America in 2018 to finish a trip G’ma tried to take when she was younger, but never finished. This all happened because Scoob got into trouble at school for accidentally showing someone how to edit computer scores and getting into a fight.  I finished the book and I recommend it because it shows how in the past Black and White people were treated differently. Because his G’ma passes away, Scoob eventually finishes the trip with his Dad. The reader eventually learns that G’ma’s trip was never finished because her husband was arrested for crimes she committed, because he was Black and G’ma was White. Scoob makes peace with his father for the mischief he didn’t mean to cause, and is left to think about the injustices of the past.