Mind-Numbed Virtue Signaling: M&M’s Makes Changes to Characters in the Name of ‘Inclusiveness’
Robotic parroting of social justice catchwords: “At Mars we believe that in the world we want tomorrow, society is inclusive. And, as one of our most iconic brands, M&M’S is announcing a new global commitment to create a world where everyone feels they belong.”
Of all the things “wokeness” had to come for, it had to target M&M’s.
Yep, the candy loved by millions worldwide and which has been around for over 80 years is being given brand makeover in the name of “inclusiveness” according to an announcement made Thursday by Mars, Incorporated:
At Mars we believe that in the world we want tomorrow, society is inclusive. And, as one of our most iconic brands, M&M’S is announcing a new global commitment to create a world where everyone feels they belong.
M&M’S has been around for more than 80 years and this year the brand continues to evolve to reflect the more dynamic, progressive world that we live in. And as part of this evolution, built on purpose, M&M’S promises to use the power of fun to include everyone with a goal of increasing the sense of belonging for 10 million people around the world by 2025.
[…]
The refreshed M&M’S brand will include a more modern take on the looks of our beloved characters, as well as more nuanced personalities to underscore the importance of self-expression and power of community through storytelling. Fans will also notice an added emphasis on the ampersand to more prominently demonstrate how the brand aims to bring people together. M&M’S branding will also reflect an updated tone of voice that is more inclusive, welcoming, and unifying, while remaining rooted in our signature jester wit and humor.
They included a video along with the announcement, where changes were noticed in some of the M&M characters:
We’re on a mission to create a world where everyone feels they belong using the power of fun! Join us in being for all funkind. #ForAllFunkind Check out https://t.co/Mq7wG9sX8v for more! pic.twitter.com/IzWI5wgW4S
— M&M'S (@mmschocolate) January 21, 2022
Most notable was that the green (female) M&M’s go-go boots were gone, which the candy made light of in a later tweet:
Did my shoes really break the internet? pic.twitter.com/ZaisgZ9QYZ
— M&M'S (@mmschocolate) January 20, 2022
The differences so far appear mainly in the shoes. The brown M&M, which was the other female, is now wearing what presumably are more sensible high heels. The blue M&M also no longer appears “caucasian” white and instead is wearing what looks like white sleeves and leggings:
I can't wait for the internet to inevitably obsess over the incredibly subtle new design changes to the M&M characters. pic.twitter.com/Y03C1wBYkW
— Mark's Yesterworld (@Yester_World) January 20, 2022
Even on the M&M’s promo website, the green M&M – which previously had been branded as kind of the “sexy” M&M, now identifies as a “hypewoman“:
What’s your best quality?
Being a hypewoman for my friends. I think we all win when we see more women in leading roles, so I’m happy to take on the part of supportive friend when they succeed.
Popular Fox News host Tucker Carlson made fun of the changes during a Friday segment, saying they were designed to to turn people off, which would mean “equity,” at least in the left’s eyes, had been achieved:
Tucker: M&M’s will not be satisfied until every last cartoon character is deeply unappealing and totally androgynous. Until the moment you wouldn’t want to have a drink with any one of them. That’s the goal. When you’re totally turned off, we’ve achieved equity… pic.twitter.com/rz7VtVCHWu
— Acyn (@Acyn) January 22, 2022
The satire website “Babylon Bee” had some fun with the news, turning it into a “story” about how Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was not going to allow the change in his state:
'Not On My Watch': DeSantis Signs Executive Order That Green M&M Must Still Be Sexy In Floridahttps://t.co/VklvOktxh3
— The Babylon Bee (@TheBabylonBee) January 22, 2022
Others were quick to point out that Mars, Inc. maybe had more pressing issues they should be worried about than gender neutralizing their characters:
I think they could do other things to be more progressive pic.twitter.com/qRPyl4kZoH
— Jimmy (@JustNotTheSam) January 20, 2022
Sorry Moises https://t.co/PCaJIryvHL
— Thanks4TheMoney (@thanks4_the) January 21, 2022
Fair point.
Will most critics of Mars, Inc.’s “woke” moves lose sleep over the changes? Nope. Is what Mars has done still stupid, though? Absolutely.
— Stacey Matthews has also written under the pseudonym “Sister Toldjah” and can be reached via Twitter. —
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Comments
Character design by Rocky Woke-Cocoa.
The ugly
dwarflittle person with his hand in your mouth?Definitley not for bears that are squeamish. Yogi wouldn’t even let BooBoo put this crap in his mouth.
One less bag of junk not to buy.
That’s a good thing, right?
I can do without M&Ms. My children are grown, and their parents can clean up the grandchildren.
So which one is “gay”? I don’t see any pink or rainbow M&Ms, so I can’t tell.
Come to think of it, since there are M&Ms with and without nuts, isn’t that a tacit admission that gender is binary? Doesn’t sound very “woke” to me.
C’mon, Mars, step up your game and go for broke.
I’m not sure. To me, all of the look reasonably happy.
That’s because they don’t know they’re about to be eaten.
You beat me to it. No pink or purple M&M.
Notice they still have Caucasian legs.
Nice that the Blue has nuts and the red doesn’t. Guess red is a soi-boy.
Caucasian legs, but no caucasian heads. Perhaps they are bi-racial.
The red one sings castrato.
Sing? I thought he played baseball for Cleveland.
From the Bee – M&M Introduces a trans character who identifies as a Skittle.
https://babylonbee.com/news/mm-introduces-new-trans-character-who-identifies-as-a-skittle
I’m thinking that’s why Blue now has gaiters and sleeves — to make him racially ambiguous. He did have the blackest voice in the crew.
“since there are M&Ms with and without nuts, isn’t that a tacit admission that gender is binary? ”
Peanut butter M&Ms. What used to be nuts (okay, legumes) got chopped up and now they look like plain.
Which one is transitioning?
Easter M&Ms are pastel. I rarely pay retail for candy, buying heavily discounted stuff after holidays.
I still have some Lincoln’s Birthday candy here somewhere… I suspect it may be a tad bit stale.
I still have a pack of “Indian” pine sap “chewing gum” from New England. “Organic” decades before the word was heard of. First and last piece I tried was in the ’60s — it was like chewing dried Pine-Sol.
I would comment but I can’t think of anything to say.
The company said it wants to make its characters more representative of customers.
Then why aren’t there any white m&m’s?
Because they are ashamed that they have white customers.
Subotai Bahadur
I’m sure it’s some FDA regulation, so they don’t get confused with Oxycodone or some damn thing.
I guess I’ll go back to my other favorite candy: the one that contains pieces of monkey meat. I’m sure you see them in the stores: Rhesus Pieces.
Rhesus Pieces? Well, that’s what they call them now. After the bear got hold of them.
Time to be like Van Halen, but instead excluding just the brown M&M’s, exclude them all.
For the record – Not once have I had a meaningful conversation with an M&M. Not once have I had an uncomfortable moment with an M&M. Not once have I chosen a color based on some sexual fantasy. Not once have I had an M&M accuse me of inappropriate use of gender description.
When I was in high school we used to joke that the blue (or was it green?) M&Ms made you horny. Never tested that theory, though.
Can confirm that teenagers eating green or blue M&Ms are horny.
It was green, at least in my school. I presume that’s why the original green character was the sexy one.
I recall one time one of my classmates was going around the lunch room collecting everyone’s green M&Ms. She was assembling a pack of all green to give the counselor as a joke.
“…an M&M.”
The springs up the question. When you’re talking about one, is it an Eminem?
Or is it just an M?
Too bad. I used to like and purchase M’s. No more.
All the ones I ever bought were defective. Not a single one of them had an M on them; they all had a cursive version of a lower case w.
And now you’re taking the chance of getting cheated by buying a bag of them that have had their nuts removed.
Some were made without nuts. That is how their creators made them. Other m&ms were made with nuts. The only way to remove them is to use your teeth. If you want to have a little fun you can put a skirt on them and pretend they don’t have nuts.
That’s an idea. I have plenty of skirts left over from the Reese’s cups.
Wokies have too much time on their hands, apparently. Another non-problem solved.
Start a rumor … the M in M&Ms is short for MAGA.
Or worse: MEN!!!
While they are tapdancing around the changes you know that they really want to make, you know and I know that eventually there are going to be #LGBTUVWXYZ M&M’s. Now since I was a kid, I have been a periodic M&M addict. In fact I have a bag on my computer desk next to me now. I do not give an obese rodent’s gluts about how the M&M’s “identify”. They are a relatively cheap bioengineered [look at the back of the package] chocolate fix. If they want to make it a political statement for or against anything, my statement will be “no”.
Subotai Bahadur
I hope you realize that the entire set of M&Ms would be classified as “candy of color.” So, how they identify is determined by looking at them. There is no white anthropomorphic M&M. By definition, all candy is asexual.
JHFC … I will not consume any Mars product whose purpose is to make a political statement or propagate political influence.
Screw M&M’s.
Was the green one in sports illustrated? Posed without her candy coating..
Tsk, tsk.
Personally, I prefer the nut variety.
I believe you all should realize something. You, and I, are having entirely too much fun with this.
This is systemic, unconscious humor.
I suppose some ugly white woman, somewhere, will take exception to this, as they do with something much else.
I’m glad that Mars has finally addressed it’s toxic masculinity problem. I’ve been conflicted about keeping my virtue signalling aligned with my candy choices. Problem solved!
In the name of equity, shouldn’t all of the M&Ms be identical? The color would be gray as it can be considered as no color and all colors at the same time! Of course, there would be no flavor to taste so nobody would be offended. Otherwise, one could argue (maybe not me) that M&Ms are obviously racist even with the changes. It would be racist to manufacture, transport, sell, buy, or eat M&Ms. Do I have that right?
It has been tried. It was called “USSR”
Do those CEOs realize how ridiculous this is?!
Bonkers!
The sophomoric logic, or should I say, illogic, of the “woke’ crowd never ceases to amaze me. “I think we all win when we see more women in leading roles, so I’m happy to take on the part of supportive friend when they succeed.”
No, no, a thousand times no. We don’t all win when we see more woman in leading roles. The men who lose their leading roles don’t win.
What is so hard to understand about this? If someone wins a leading role, someone else loses that role. Not everyone wins.
So, the green M&M is now trans-candyal?
I guess some POC (Pieces Of Candy) are more equal than others. Seems we have heard that before, somewhere, maybe down on the Farm?
I’m surprised they aren’t completing the rainbow. Purple M&Ms are long overdue.
Seriously pink and lavender are always available around Easter.
But the content of their character is always indistinguishable.
I guess one advantage in being diabetic is that you don’t have to concern yourself about the politics of candy.
Thank you Mars Co.. You along with Coke a Cola are making great strides in improving my health and well being. As long as you remain woke I will never ever consume any of your product line.
I would call this a very successful advertising campaign.
It got a bunch of people talking about an otherwise uninteresting candy.
Remember, there is no such thing as ‘bad’ publicity.
Prince Andrew says: “Bollocks!”
Good grief.