Watch the Cheerios ad above. It’s got all the elements of a good commercial: adorable kid, good-lookin’ Mom (played by Whitney Avalon) and Dad, and a gag with a pretty good payoff at the end. By rights, it should be getting a thumbs-up from all corners.
Unfortunately, it’s not, because in the ad, Mom is white, Dad is black, and some people are jerks.
Even in 2013, despite that the fact that mixed-race couples are increasingly common, it still upsets people. The people behind YouTube’s “Cheerios” account had to disable comments after they devolved into a flame war about politics (some people are still upset about the idea of a black president) or race (where a lot of people went on about the perils of multiculturalism and the slow suicide of the white race).
AdWeek observes that while TV shows are depicting a number of interracial couples these days, commercials have lagged behind because advertisers are scared of making controversial statements and scaring away people from their brands. Huffington Post reports:
Commenters on the cereal’s Facebook page also said they found the commercial “disgusting” and that it made them “want to vomit.” Other hateful commenters expressed shock that a black father would stay with his family.
To their credit, Cheerios is standing by the ad, and to the credit of a lot of good people out there, there’s a lot of praise for the ad too. It may be 2013, and to a lot of people, an ad like this may not be that big a deal (especially in places like Accordion City, where we’ve managed to get along better than most), but as Meagan Hatcher Mays writes, it is a very big effing deal.
Want to do a good deed today? Head on over to where Cheerios posted the ad on their Facebook page and show some support for the ad. Click the “Like” button or say something nice. Surely you have friends, family or even a favourite blogger who’s part of a mixed-race couple…
Do it for them. Do it for me. Do it for human decency in general.
One reply on “It’s the 21st Century, So Why are Some People Still Upset by This Cheerios Commercial?”
The only mixed thing I see about your couple is your citizenships.
Each time I go the the USA, I’m shocked at how people live in segregated silos and frankly, having this discussion in 2013 is just unbelievable!