We all know what the sound of the ice cream truck means: warm weather, bright sunshine and, of course, ice cream. The tinkle of the tune it plays triggers a sense of yearning for the innocence of childhood. Well, it turns out that one of these seemingly innocuous little ditties is not so innocent.
Code Switch decided to delve into the history behind one of the popular tunes. Depending on where you live, the variation of songs may be different, but I know one of the ones I’ve often heard is the tune from “Do Your Ears Hang Low.” It turns out that this is derived from the 19th century song “Turkey in the Straw.” However, the song only became popular in the United States after it was widely spread as a minstrel song [warning: the song may be upsetting].
According to the article:
“Nigger Love A Watermelon Ha! Ha! Ha!” merits the distinction of the most racist song title in America. Released in March 1916 by Columbia Records, it was written by actor Harry C. Browne and played on the familiar depiction of black people as mindless beasts of burden greedily devouring slices of watermelon.
As quickly as it began, the music paused, and this call-and-response ensued:
Browne: “You niggers quit throwin’ them bones and come down and get your ice cream!”
Black men (incredulously): “Ice Cream?!?”
Browne: “Yes, ice cream! Colored man’s ice cream: WATERMELON!!”
I know some people may be thinking, “Well that may be the root of the song, but they’re just using it because the updated version is a kid’s tune.” How sweet. And how very wrong.
Ice cream parlors of the early 19th century played the popular minstrel shows of their time. The automobile boom and mass escape to the suburbs after World War II resulted in ice cream parlors having to develop a new way to reach customers. Hence, the ice cream truck was born. In order to give people a nostalgic sense of the ice cream parlors, they played some of those same minstrel songs, including (you guessed it) Browne’s lovely song.
Although this may seem like something small and inconsequential, it’s not. When we let little things like this go by, they add up. It’s just proof of how racism is ingrained in even the most wholesome parts of our culture. When we write things like this off as innocent and harmless, we are doing ourselves a grave disservice and contributing to the many facets of our culture that cling to racism.
I’m not accusing ice cream trucks of having some secret racist agenda. They probably don’t realize the roots of the song. However, that doesn’t mean that we should just leave it now that we know. We can’t feign ignorance anymore. How many little things do we let slide before it grows into bigger things that we sweep under the rug?