Brand Formerly Known as Dixie is Now an Anti-Racist Hero. Hooray!
In leiu of a new brand name, Dixie®, now _____®, has leaned into emptiness as an activist strategy.
Irrational Takes is a satirical column that highlights the nonsense and bullshit in current events.
Photo collage by Ally Hart
ATLANTA — On Tuesday, Dixie®, the brand known for its memorably flimsy waxed paper cups, attained the status of anti-racist hero when announced it would change its name to “_____®.” The cup company joins the ranks of other social justice warriors, such as Land O’Lakes, the Washington Redskins, Lady Antebellum, and the Dixie Chicks, who have recently removed racist words or images from their brands and replaced them with the least racist thing of all: nothing.
In response to ongoing conversations about systematic racism in America, many brands have opted to remove racist elements in favor of void-like emptiness. While Land O’Lakes nixed its image of a kneeling Native American woman offering up a package of butter in favor of an empty O, the Washington Redskins took a similar approach, opting to become the actively anti-racist “Washington Football Team.”
“It’s so important that cultural leaders such as ourselves really set the example for the rest of society that racism is, in fact, bad,” said Lee Robert, the CEO of “_____®,” the company formerly known as Dixie®. “And to show that this gesture isn’t just symbolic, we’ll be donating 1% of all proceeds to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.”
Despite backlash, which has included ex-fans nicknaming the Washington Football Team the “Washington Wishy-Washies,” NFL spokesperson Erin Whitmore said she was happy with the change. “We’re so glad that the public let us know our former name was racist,” she said. “We had no idea that the term ‘redskin’ was pejorative, and we believe our new name amply proves our commitment to the cause. Power to the people!”
Meanwhile, the popular country group Lady Antebellum changed its name to Lady A. “Even though the ‘A’ still stands for Antebellum, we’re confident that this won’t be misconstrued,” said Evan Dunder, the band’s long-time agent. “After all, it’s the thought that counts, and our name change certainly reflects the agonizing hour that we spent making this decision. It feels good to be an ally.”
In spite of the fact that the newly-christened Lady A had to sue a Black blues singer who has performed under that name for years in order to obtain it, fans of the country band agree that Lady A(ntebellum) is well on its way to achieving the status of “least racist musical group in America.”
As for “_____®,” the name change has drawn equal parts appreciation and mystification from loyal customers. Hank Goblet, whose collection of Dixie cups spans decades and multiple rooms of his house, remarked that he does not know how to find the cups anymore. “The brand was everything to me,” he said, gesturing at the stacks of cups behind him, intricately stacked so as to spell out the word DIXIE. “Is ‘_____®’ really better than this? I just don’t know.”
