A Virginia mayor is being urged to quit after he joked on social media that Joe Biden had announced Aunt Jemima as his running mate for th...
A Virginia mayor is being urged to quit after he joked on social media that Joe Biden had announced Aunt Jemima as his running mate for the November election.
Former Vice President Biden has vowed to select a woman for the position and among the politicians up for the job are many women of color, including California Sen. Kamala Harris, California Rep. Karen Bass, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, former National Security Adviser Susan Rice, and former Orlando police chief Congresswoman Val Demings.
As Biden delayed the announcement set for this week, Luray Mayor Barry Presgraves posted on Facebook Sunday: 'Joe Biden just announced Aunt Jemima as his VP pick.'
The shocking comparison comes after Quaker Oats announced in June that it will retire the Aunt Jemima brand, saying the company recognizes the character's origins are 'based on a racial stereotype.'
Luray Mayor Barry Presgraves posted on Facebook Sunday: 'Joe Biden just announced Aunt Jemima as his VP pick'
Quaker Oats announced in June that it will retire the brand, saying the company recognizes the character's origins are 'based on a racial stereotype' of mammies
Final contenders for the vice presidential spot on the Democratic ticket include former National Security Adviser Susan Rice (left) Congresswoman Karen Bass (center) and California Sen. Kamala Harris (right)
That stereotype is of the 'mammy' mascots which is widely considered to be a racist caricature because it depicts an African-American devoted to taking care of a white family.
The imagery of the servant with exaggerated features and a wide smile helped further spread the false idea that the worker was content in their role.
Presgraves insisted that his social media post doesn't stem from a belief that white people are superior to black people because he has purchased the Quaker Oats brand for years.
'I don't even depict that as racist,' the 77-year-old continued. 'I ate Aunt Jemima all my life.'
'I saw it last week, and I thought it was funny,' Presgraves said on Monday afternoon. He deleted the post after about 30 minutes following a backlash.
'I consider it sad that everyone wants to jump on the bandwagon,' Presgraves told Page Valley News about recent protests over racial equality, petitions to remove Confederate statues and his own comparison of politicians to mammies.
'The many voices of our community welcome all to Luray,' the Facebook post from the town said on Monday. There are 200 black people in the town of 5,000
The statement made no mention of the mayor but invited people to share 'constructive suggestions' to help them accomplish their goal to serve the community. People called for Presgraves to leave the position as mayor
'I'm sorry I done it… there was no [bad] intent behind it,' Presgraves told PVN. 'I don't post that often. I had to call someone to get them to tell me how to take it down.'
'I thought it was humorous. I had no idea people would react the way they did. I think people have gone overboard on this … It's an election year.'
The mayor called the post a 'mistake' but admitted he doesn't think he did anything wrong.
'If I had a chance to do it over again, I wouldn't do it. You can apologize all you want, but no one will believe it.'
Despite the mayor's reluctance to admit any wrongdoing, the Town of Luray tied to reassure people that racism isn't at its core.
'The Town of Luray's Mission Statement included in our Personnel Policies Manual states "It is the mission of every Town employee to deliver quality service to our residents, customers, and visitors in an efficient, effective, and equitable manner in order to promote pride in our community."
'I don't even depict that as racist,' the 77-year-old mayor said. 'I ate Aunt Jemima all my life.' Older imagery of the mammy stereotype is pictured on the Aunt Jemima brand
'We believe that our employees and every person in our community deserves fair and just treatment,' it said in a Facebook post on Monday.
'The many voices of our community welcome all to Luray,' the Facebook post continued.
'The Town of Luray rejects racism and is committed to working together with the community through understanding, compassion, and opportunity. The Town Council will discuss the events leading to this statement at their August 10th meeting.'
The statement made no mention of the mayor but invited people to share 'constructive suggestions' to help them accomplish their goal to serve the community.
There are fewer than 200 African American people in the town of 5,000 residents.
Presgraves said on Sunday that he has no intention of resigning as the people elected him and he had several months to go. He will not be running for another term.
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