Supermarket giant Coles will change the name of an in-house brand of biscuits amid claims it is racist.
Coles Spokesman Jim Cooper said the name of the “You’ll Love Coles” brand of chocolate and vanilla biscuits, called Creole Creams, will be changed as part of the company-wide rebranding of Coles products.
The name change comes on the back of claims of racism, with the word Creole used to describe a person of mixed European and African ancestry.
“The word Creole comes from a period when people’s humanity was measured by the amount of white blood they had in their bloodstream. This is the same kind of thought that underpinned horrific regimes like the Nazis,” Sam Watson, the deputy director of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies Unit at the University of Queensland, told brisbanetimes.com.au yesterday.
But Mr Cooper today disputed the racist claims and said the name Creole Creams referred to the “well-known Creole cuisine style that originated in the US.”
The word ‘creole’ is racist? It clearly refers to race, or more specifically skin colour, but as far as I’m aware its not derogatory. Is this biscuit thing just politically correct nonsense? If you are injured while eating one, would it constitute a race related incident?
I personally am very upset whenever whitewall tires go on sale as if my ancestors can be disrespected so openly.
So an Australian store is selling spicy hot chocolate creme cookies. Either Australians have strange tastes or the store really doesn’t know Creole food really is.
this is just plain fucking stupid.
Unless someone’s knowledgeable about Australian English I don’t think we can really know if “creole” is an insult in Australia or not.
I think the excuse that calling the cookies “creole” because it is related to creole cooking is pretty flimsy though. They look like Oreos. It is conceivable that someone wanted to make some knockoff Oreos (which are knockoffs of Hydrox) and knew that “oreo” is a slang for someone who “is white on the inside but black on the outside” and that led them to think of “creole.” Who really knows though.
I haven’t been this insulated since “Whitey’s Crackers”!
Read the history of the Creole people and how their fully white neighbors treated them after the Southern Reformation. It was a political and economic power play in part helped by the Yankees that pulled out of New Orleans early for payoffs. Should it matter to the Aussies, probably not. They have such a fine history of treating the indigenous peoples of Australia.
Wouldn’t the term Oreo be racist since that is a slang term for those who have both an African American parent and a Caucasian parent? They should change their name too. Maybe call it TransFat-Os
Seriously, I thought Creole referred to Louisiana cooking, not race. Are Creoles in Australia not referring to Louisiana.
#6 RTaylor
Agreed. The treatment of the indigenous population of Australia by the European immigrants is, to this day, a national disgrace. However, being pedantic about the naming of a biscuit is not doing race relations much good.
If you’re gonna go after racially charged food names, I’d have thought this a bigger target.
This can join the ranks of “Coon Cheese”
Another ‘racist’ ozzie invention.
The racist claims blew over, as I’m sure this will…
*shaking head*
Maybe they should try calling a cookie a cookie first.
I’m Australian. I can tell you what happened, an aboriginal activist complained the word was a racist term. Now I don’t think most white aussies even know the term or consider it racist. But well, the supermarket decided they had to respond for PR reasons.
So I can’t use the word Creole anymore!?!?! while we’re at it, can we change Saltines, Wheat Thins, and other buscuity things into something other than a racial epithet?
Dang it, I wish someone would publish a list of words I can use without offending anymore.
I don’t think this rises to the level of a product I remember, “Darkie” toothpaste, with a picture of a black man with white lips and a silk top hat. Of course, also as bad was “Nigger Licorice Whips”, which I remember from my childhood.
Just kidding about the licorice.. Get over it.
But there was “Chocolate Babies” candies, shaped like little babies, colored like pre-op Michael Jackson. Even I, at age six, knew they were little Africans.
And lastly, if I see an Asian walking down the street in San Francisco, and refer to him or her as an “Asian”, I am fine.
If I see an African walking down the same street, and refer to him or her as an “African”, I am in deep shit.
How many hoops we must negotiate to please the race gods.
So the trick is if you don’t like something just toss out the word “racist” and like rubbing a magic lamp the genie forces the white folk to remove what supposedly offends.
More honorable to say, “Sure, I’m a racist… now what?”
Better than being a coward.
Wow, I guess nearly every restaurant in Louisiana has to close down….
Creole is a term of pride, seen as the best of two cultures combined.
Aussies are idiots. Who make crappy beer.
#7, “Wouldn’t the term Oreo be racist since that is a slang term for those who have both an African American parent and a Caucasian parent? “
You are thinking of mulatto, and isn’t a slang term, just a seldom used one.
An Oreo is a black person who dresses and acts “white.”
I am shocked and outraged.
The packaging of those cookies (and all other products) use letters from the alphabet. Often, letters of the alphabet can be arranged into words which are offensive. Therefore, any use of the alphabet (including this post) should be banned.
In America, Creole is generally someone of mixed French, Black, and or native ancestry. It also is the language they speak, mostly based upon french but also containing some African words and local terms.
The food cooked by American Creoles is more commonly referred to as Cajun. It is generally quite hot, spicy, and flavorful and utilizes locally available ingredients.
Different areas of South and Central America and especially the Caribbean differ slightly on their definitions of Creole. Because of the localities, most Creole dialects are very distinct.
Louisiana native here.
Creole is not a racial slur and people taking it to be one really offends me.
# 15 Faxon said, on October 27th, 2009 at 6:19 am
“If I see an African walking down the same street, and refer to him or her as an “African”, I am in deep shit.
How many hoops we must negotiate to please the race gods.”
I have a black friend and an African American friend. My black friend prefers to be called black and my African American friend prefers to be called African American. I follow their preferences because they are my friends. In practice, though, I usually just refer to them by their first names instead though.
If you live in the United States the term “African” might not be appropriate. Besides the Africans I know prefer to be called Egyptians, Somalians, Kenyans, South Africans, or Namibians. Interestingly enough, not all, but some of these people are not black.
“The food cooked by American Creoles is more commonly referred to as Cajun.”
Whoa whoa whoa hold up a minute.
Cajun food and Creole food are NOT the same thing.
They do share some common dishes, but there is a world of difference between Creole Jambalaya and Cajun Jambalaya for example.
#23 “Cajun food and Creole food are NOT the same thing.”
Looks like a road trip to Louisiana is needed to run experiments to test this theory of yours. I look forward to testing the difference between Creole Jambalaya and Cajun Jambalaya. I would also be willing to test other dishes.
Do Creole dishes and Cajun dishes have different regions within Louisiana or can I find both throughout Louisiana? Can you recommend other dishes that the two types of cuisines do not share?
My fellow Americans,
We aren’t the only people to use the word “creole.” There are a lot of “creole” people that have nothing to do with Louisiana.
I am curious about the usage of the word in Australia since it is a French word and Australia doesn’t have a strong French influence.
I’m guessing maybe it’s called creole because the word *looks* a lot like oreo (where c and o look similar) as a nod to the cookie they copy?
Looks like the Barack Hussein Obama modus operandi is spreading around the world.
I guess its no more black bottom pie for me. So wrong on so many levels…
I have never purchased a Coles product, and after hearing of this pathetic attempt to appease a bunch of whiners, I assure you I never will.
No more watermelon for you!