Name Change Update

Organic Redneck is changing its name to Upriver Organics. Stay tuned as we slowly adjust our logo, signs and other materials. thanks for weighing in with suggestions and asking good questions in the process. 

While we understand that many of you like our old name, we liked it to, we picked it. But whatever it meant to you, it also stood for some things that we don't agree with. Whether those interpretations of "redneck" are accurate or not.

The word redneck can stand for lots of things: hard working, yes! rural can-do spirit, yes! Working with our hands, in the sun, yes! It is also sometimes associated with a small minded, racist ideology, and are values do not fit with that. 

Read more about the decision to change the name below. 

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Organic Redneck Name: History and Future 

The land we now call Organic Redneck is here along the banks of the McKenzie River. It has a long history that is only partially known. The Kalapuya tribe(s) were said to live along the McKenzie long before westerners arrived, and possibly other ancient peoples were here even before the Kalapuya. While there is a rich history in this valley, today, we’re focusing on recent history. 

Organic Redneck’s history started when Douglass Moser and Carol Ach first acquired the farm in the mid-90s. The farm came with a name from the prior owner’s, the Halbert family. The farm’s name, “Halbert’s Blueberries” was a fine name, but the sign that hung was well worn and Carol and Douglass were ready to hang a fresh painted one. Briefly the farm was named Mountain View Farm, but it was in conflict with another Lane Country farm so the name was changed, this time to “Mckenzie River Farm”. This name served the farm for a number of years and in a few places it can still be found today. 

In the early 2000s, a term emerged that encapsulated the kind of folks Carol, Douglass and their kids were, “Organic Redneck”. This didn offend anyone at the time, as many rural Oregonians are self-described rednecks. Our family is made up of long-term Oregonians, who drive trucks, run chainsaws and are often sunburnt from working in the sun. And they were scrappy, self-sufficient types. At some point, some t-shirts were printed with “Organic Redneck'' on the front of them and “I make dirt look good” on the back, and the name was embraced. The T-shirts were popular, and people just started calling the farm and farmers “The Organic Rednecks”.

Some years later when Sam and Jack (the next generation) started taking on the responsibility of farming the land from their parents, they decided to set up a new business. Sam and Jack were ready to rename the farm in a way to identify it separately from the farm their folks had run. So, they took the phrase from the t-shirts and attached it to the LLC, “Organic Redneck LLC. This name was different, it stood out, it seemed oxymoronic to some folks. It was also just unique enough to be memorable. This was not as well thought out as it should have been, but Organic Redneck was now the name. The signage, website, etc. were adorned with the same name. Maybe it was because of the farmers’ limited perspectives or just a lack of knowledge of the historical meaning of the term redneck, but the undertones were missed at first. It seems that the term redneck, to an Oregonian didn’t have the controversial history that the term carried to many folks, and there was a belief that it just represented the rural working class individuals in our neck of the woods. .

As time went on Jack became the only family member still farming the land. People often questioned Jack and the name of the farm, and it became clear that this term redneck had a very complicated and racist history. While Jack tried to justify the use of the term by showing his sunburnt neck and trying to reclaim the term from some of it’s associations as a white, working class individual, it was a steep hill to climb. Jack stated that we had no intentions to associate ourselves with the derogatory or racist ideology, but as our awareness increased over time, it became harder and harder for us to defend the use of this name. 

While we have talked about changing the farm’s name for several years, and have had intention to do so, during the Summer of 2020, it became ever more glaringly obvious that it was past time for us to move away from the redneck term.  

We took some time this summer, and talked with our employees about what our farm could do to make a better impact on the world in specific ways that would support people of color and indigenous communities. We determined that we needed to take a closer look at a number of things, but one very strong desire was that the farm’s name was not representing what we wanted to communicate about our values. 

The history of the term ‘redneck’ is complex and somewhat disputed, but there is little debate that it has historically been used as a derogatory term for poor, white farmers. More optimistic historical accounts have claimed that the term originated with coal miners who wore red handkerchiefs to signify their membership in a union, a symbol that actually helped unify white, black, and immigrant laborers.[1] It has also been used as a denigrating term for working class people who support populist reforms and alleged communists, certainly histories worth supporting and reclaiming.[2] However, despite some potentially positive associations with poor and working-class people, most people’s immediate first impression upon hearing the word in today’s climate is undeniable. It calls to mind this country’s long history of racism and a recent resurgence of unapologetic white supremacy. While there are some “rednecks” reclaiming this identity to oppose racism, whether or not this connotation is 100% accurate should be a moot point when designing a public image meant to symbolize our values.

Associating ourselves with the term ‘redneck’ may have far-reaching negative impacts to People of Color (POC). It may dissuade these individuals from feeling safe in places like the farmer’s market that are already predominantly white. It may prevent potential POC farmers from applying to work for the farm, hampering efforts to increase diversity among staff. It may delegitimize staff members’ ability to do other important anti-racism work in the community if they are associated with a business whose branding disrespects people of color. 

While the farm continually evolves and changes over time, the name change is part of a larger change we are starting to make. This change involves us reevaluating many things about the way we participate as a business, in our community and with our employees. But, we also want to assure everyone that some things won’t change; we will continue to be unrelenting in our quest for exceedingly high quality, delicious, locally grown fruits and vegetables. 

As we think about renaming the farm, we want to be more methodical than in the previous iterations, this may take some time.

Jack Richardson, and staff, 

[1] https://slate.com/culture/2019/12/redneck-origin-definition-union-uprising-south.html

[2] https://daily.jstor.org/redneck-a-brief-history/

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