For some representatives of this current of thought, the overly politicized characters of the confectionery brand had become “woke”.
The confectioner M&M’S has given up using in its advertisements, until further notice, the famous characters reminiscent of the shape of its chocolate candies, criticized by part of the American conservative right, which considers them politicized. The business had started with the launch, in September, of a new member of the family of “spokescandies” (candy mouthpieces), christened Purple (purple).
It was the third female character in the strip, after Green (green) and Brown (brown), created, according to M&M’S, “to represent acceptance and inclusion”. Purple notably symbolizes support for the LGBTQ community and the expression of homosexuality. Purple’s arrival sparked criticism, with netizens blaming Mars Wrigley, parent company of M&M’s, for politicizing chocolate candies.
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According to them, the M&M’S characters had become “woke”, a word that designates activism against all forms of discrimination and exclusion targeting one or more minorities. The controversy rebounded in early January with the marketing of a special limited-edition pack that contained only the three colors of the female characters, green, brown and purple. The “M&M’s ‘woke’ are back”, protested, shortly after the announcement, Tucker Carlson, one of the star presenters of the Fox News channel, known for the very conservative positions of several of its stars. He mentioned, in a mocking tone, that Green was “maybe lesbian” and that Purple was “obese”in reference to its oval shape rather than round, similar to that of M&M’s containing a peanut.
In January 2022, Tucker Carlson had already taken up the subject to accuse M&M’S of having replaced Green’s white boots with sneakers, which made her “less sexy”. Referring to these changes, M&M’s explained, in a message posted on Twitter on Monday, that it did not expect them to “shake up the internet”. “But now we understand”added the confectioner, “even a candy’s shoes can spark polarization”.
Gold “it was the last thing we wanted, because our goal is to bring people together”said M&M’S. “As a result, we have decided to put the characters on hiatus for an indefinite period of time”, the company announced. The animated creatures will be replaced, in the new advertising campaigns, by the actress and comedian Maya Rudolph.
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