Eskimo Joe’s - Stillwater, Oklahoma
Beginning July 2020, Taitana Hayton created a petition on Change.org to address the racist imagery and name by calling on Stan Clark to rebrand his business.
“People of color shouldn't be seen as caricatures or used as mascots. It's damaging for children to see themselves depicted as ugly or dehumanized. These depictions parallel the racist ads, mascots, and cartoons of Native Americans, Asians, and Africans. The Inuit and Mexican people are not to be exploited for these restaurants' branding.” – Tatiana Hayton
Despite the petition, the company polled the restaurant’s fan base through their website and came to the conclusion that if it wasn’t harming the customer base then the image and name will be staying.
"As a company, we pride ourselves on giving our loyal customers what they want, so we currently plan to make no changes to our name or logo,"- Eskimo Joe's Facebook
The fan base, however, were not the people being affected by the name.
Youtube - We Are Not Your Mascots.
The restaurant is a pride of Stillwater. Critics argue that Stan Clark is a role model, and could address the harm that the name and logo have caused the Inuit and Yu’pik communities … all it would take is a little bit of rebranding.
For more on the story as it unfolded:
Eskimo Joe's Taking Heat Over Mascot - Stillwater Press
The Lost Ogle - A Cold Shoulder, An Indigenous Road Trip to Eskimo Joe's in Stillwater
For the history of the word “eskimo:”
