Yuck. 'Sweetie' is almost always used in such a sexist way that I can't believe this passed through any sort of review process. The 3% of the time it is said by a grandfather to his 5 year old granddaughter is the only appropriate usage, otherwise it is only uttered by somebody who is being an asshole.

Also loved the way that the press release described the cupcakes themselves as "sassy" and "independent."

Hopefully the cupcakes are lo-cal, so they don't go to anyone's hips.

Are they using the song in a commercial? To what extent is Draze involved in their marketing for this benefit?

Nominated for oblivion: "classy". If you use it, you aren't it.

Sugar and spice and every nice , eh? Are we back in the 50's now?

I'm sorry, I couldn't finish reading the article as the use of the term 'problematic' in a piece about cupcakes caused my eyes to roll so hard I was afraid I'd injure myself.

Outrage addicts are outraged. Film at 11. I suggest you take to Twiiter with a new hashtag to punish these women owned businesses for their hate crime. How dare they raise money for a good cause without first navigating today's latest edicts of political correctness. Do those harmed by this have a govt funded safe space to take refuge?

Have you tasted their cupcakes?
At least they'll never have to use the word
MOIST in any of their marketing...

R U empowered by the cupcakes, yet?

And no vegan options? Sigh... Don't they realize dairy is a product of rape?

Also, I may be confused by the details of this article, but why is the money raised by Cupcake Royale going to support a thing that benefits a cause? Why not just benefit the cause directly, by giving money directly to Mary's Place? I assume there's a logical explanation that I'm missing because of lack of info.

Wait, what? That one line you quote is absolutely insufficient evidence to support your objections. Just because he's singing about sexytimes doesn't mean that he's insufficiently against violence against women. You sound pissed for the sake of it. So make a better case or expect people to read your displeasure as petulant and unfounded. And perplexing.

If all your whiners raise more money for domestic violence shelters and bring more PR awareness to Domestic violence to women and children, then you had made your point.. if you want to be snarky, back it up with your wallet, or do a good crowd source campaign.. However, stop whining/whinging, it takes all things necessary and the entire community to help women in abusive relationships, besides healthcare costs..

Angela, for what it's worth, I agree with you that this should have been thought through further.

Cupcakes, baked and sold by a women-owned-and-operated local business, in order to raise money to help homeless women and children - these are "problematic" because the product names are "reductive and not empowering".

Cupcakes.

That's it folks, I'm calling it - peak cultural correctness in Seattle - reached on Tuesday, November 3, 2015 at 3:33 pm.

Triggercakes!!! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!!

Way to take something positive and turn into negative. Shotty journalism at its best.

The gournalism is shotty

Taking notes on the off chance that this results in a "free cupcakes for life" sort of placation.

@16

So go to the bakery and call all the male staff "dude" and all the female staff "sweetie" when you address them if it's all kosher. As in, "Thanks, dude" and, "Do you have napkins, sweetie?"

yeah, what the hell? i'm afraid i agree w/@16.

Who is Nicki Krebs? You misspelled the person you interviewed throughout the whole article. Nicki Kerbs is an amazing woman and I love Cupcake Royale! How can you be so negative to cupcakes? Life is too short to be in rage over a great local business supporting a great cause.

Life is "problematic". Can we retire that term?

This whole "story" becomes null and void when Angela misquotes the song AND spells Nicki KERB'S name wrong. To write such an incorrect and real reach of an article, you'd think that you would at least be able to spell the name of the person you "interviewed." I use the word interview loosely because I was unable to find one valid point as to why anything Draze or CR has said or done that would support this argument... I love Cupcake Royale, they love to be involved in local artists, their communities, so why not partner up with a local hip hop artist to 1. Spread love of the Seattle name. 2. Help raise awareness and money for a great cause. 3. Be allowed to market themselves in new and innovative ways. I never associated their cupcake flavors to be an underlying suggestion that the cupcakes were "sexy" or "objectifying women." I mean really, it's a cupcake... It's charity... Since when should a local company raising money for a local charity need to be scrutinized? Pathetic!

@16 - Perhaps you missed the part where "sweeties" refers to the baked goods - quite literally sweetened with sugar - available for sale?

You'd have a point if the label "Seattle Sweeties" was used for, say, a museum retrospective of female artists from the Pacific Northwest. You know, people instead of pastries. But nothing of the sort applies here, and instead all you've done is make MY point for me.

P.S. I'm a cis white heteronormative male, and my personal and anecdotal experience is that I get called "hun", "love", "darlin", etc on a semi-regular basis - ironically almost exclusively by female acquaintances. I take those with the affection that is clearly intended. And the only person I call "sweetie" (or any other term of endearment for that matter) is my wife. Though I have been known to drop the occasional "dude" or even "buddy" into conversation sometimes.

@16

Well, sure, if your understanding operates only at the literal level, then it's nothing but food.

Dang it, we both referenced @16 mistakenly.

Oops, yes indeed @28, my "people not pastries" comment was directed at @21 and not myself. Thanks for pointing that out.

Who is the person that let this article be published at all? The information given is completely misguided and uninformed. First off, the name Nicki Kerbs is misspelled to "Nicki Krebs" at least 4 times in this article only to be changed 8 hours later to her correct name. How did you "interview" her and not know her correct name? Second, Draze's lyrics are completely misquoted and taken out of context.

The only thing I dislike more than the now-ancient “amazing” cupcakes fad, is using the word “sassy” to describe independent, empowered women.

@12 The Fashion Show is a tool to help with women in the shelter with self esteem issues, by modeling and helping them getting on their feet, besides, raising money for the shelter. The Shelter/foundation most likely asked Cupcake Royale to specifically fund it.

From the event website: Runway to Freedom is committed to empowering survivors of domestic violence by funding local organizations that provide individuals and families with the education and resources needed to get out of dangerous situations and start living healthy lives.

I like independent cupcakes b/c the last cupcake I ate asked me to pay its phone bill and I was like, "Whaaa?"

Anjilla, how do you like your name misspelled, sweetie, or would that be sour puss? You are rude and the one who is clueless. Listen to the lyrics AGAIN! You were WRONG and, as a result, your misquote completely changed the meaning of the song which has stirred a lot of unnecessary comments and drama. Before judging Draze or Cupcake Royale, you might want to actually do some research so you know what you're talking about (shame on you) … I believe it’s called due diligence. And think about it. Why would an artist or company (owned and operated by women) whose ultimate goal was to be supportive of this local and global issue use or allow lyrics contrary to their beliefs and relative to such an important campaign? I've known Draze for years ... his loving spirit, intentions, and support of all women issues has always been positive and for the good of the community. The only bad idea was your article and it sounds like you need a little candy coating. An apology is owed to both!

This article is void. Why must we try and destroy something that is for charity and a very good cause without actual knowledge of its purpose. Uneducated people are the source of negative outcome. I'd say that if you're gonna choose to write about food, write about food. I see the only "problematic" thing about this article is the writer. Let's look at this without having such a narrow mind set. Also, personally do you even take a moment to donate to any cause at all because anyone who wants to try and bring negativity to charity must not know or care to do it themselves.
Many people will benefit from what Cupcake Royale has chosen to do and they will continue to empower not only women but everyone in the community.

I said "sandwich" not "cupcakes".

@23, @25, @30, @36: Thanks for pointing out the error. I am sorry about misspelling of Nicki Kerbs's last name and have corrected it throughout the post. And @36, If my name is accidentally misspelled, I ask for it to be corrected and understand that sometimes mistakes happen.

@30, @36: Thank you for pointing out that I misquoted Draze's lyrics and mischaracterized his intentions. Michelle Layva, a spokesperson for Draze, gave me the correct lyrics, which were very different from what I had heard. There is obviously a huge distinction between the two that completely changes my interpretation of those lines. The post has been corrected and updated. I apologize for the mistake.

@30, @36: Oof. That's Michelle Leyva, not Layva. Once again, I'm sorry about the mistake.