Consumer goods · CL

Colgate-Palmolive

Colgate-Palmolive is a global consumer-goods company whose brands include Colgate toothpaste; in Asia it co-owns the Darlie brand formerly sold as Darkie.

The quick read Reason for concern Reviewed Aug 24, 2026

The quick snapshot

Public concern on the record.

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Public concern

Why people pushed back

Darkie toothpaste featured blackface minstrel imagery and a slur-adjacent English name. After U.S. criticism following Colgate’s 1985 stake, the English name became Darlie in 1989 while Chinese branding long remained “Black Person Toothpaste.” In 2020 Colgate said it would review and evolve the brand again amid racial-justice pressure.

Blackface brand history
Darkie toothpaste used blackface brandingBBC and Reuters reported the brand launched as Darkie with packaging showing a smiling man in a top hat associated with blackface/minstrel imagery; the Chinese name translated as “Black Person Toothpaste.” Colgate bought half of Hawley & Hazel in 1985 and faced U.S. controversy over the racist branding.Source: BBC ↗
Company rebrand/review
1989 rename to Darlie; 2020 further reviewCoverage notes the English name changed to Darlie in 1989 after pressure, while Chinese naming lagged. In June 2020 Reuters reported Colgate said it was working with its partner to review and further evolve all aspects of Darlie, including the brand name, amid U.S. racial-justice debates. Company evolution under pressure—not a lawsuit verdict.Source: Reuters ↗

Aug 24, 2026 · The Cookout Editorial Desk

Colgate’s Darkie toothpaste sold blackface as a smile

BLUF

Colgate’s Asian Darkie toothpaste used blackface packaging and a racial slur name; it became Darlie in 1989, and in 2020 Colgate said it would further evolve the still-controversial brand.

What happened

For decades the Darkie toothpaste brand—later partly owned by Colgate-Palmolive—sold paste under a name critics called a racial slur, with packaging tied to blackface minstrel imagery. After Colgate took a stake in 1985, U.S. pressure mounted. The English name became Darlie in 1989; Chinese “Black Person Toothpaste” branding persisted longer. In 2020, amid global racial-justice protests, Colgate said it would review and further evolve the brand.

The Cookout read

Concern. Selling toothpaste with a Blackface grin is not subtle. Renames under pressure are admissions that the old brand was indefensible—not proof the company led the moral charge.

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Now / update

Where the record stands.

Last reviewed Aug 24, 2026. This is present-day status, not a new verdict.

Dated items opened here are the sourced Black-specific receipts in this file.

Last reviewed August 24, 2026.

Source file

Open the full passages.

Links may change after publication. Dates describe the event or publication listed in the record.

01
BBC
Darkie toothpaste used blackface branding · Jan 1, 1985
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02
Reuters
1989 rename to Darlie; 2020 further review · Jun 18, 2020
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