JD Vance grew up in Appalachia, here's why Tennessee's Mountain Dew is a source of pride

JD Vance's joke tying racism to Tennessee's own Diet Mountain Dew made national news because pundits said, frankly, it came off as a little weird .

But let's get to the heart of the issue. Why is the Republican vice presidential candidate talking about Mountain Dew?

“I had a Diet Mountain Dew yesterday and one today, and I’m sure they’re going to call that racist too,” he told the crowd at a rally in his Ohio hometown.

Donald Trump's running mate was using a little Appalachia pride to make the claim Democrats "say it’s racist to do anything."

Since the soda’s creation, it has often been associated with Appalachia and rust belt communities like Vance’s, but why is that?

Where was Mountain Dew created?

In 1930s Knoxville, brothers Barney and Ally Harman wanted to create a mixer for their whiskey and moonshine. They decided to name their lemon-lime soda concoction Mountain Dew because it was old slang for Moonshine.

When they branded it, it had mountain imagery including a character named “Hillbilly Willy.” Knox News reported that they also used slogans such as "It'll tickle your innards"as a marketing tactic.

With its imagery, the slogans and origin story, the soda instantly became associated with Southern Appalachia. There is even a historical marker for "The Birthplace of Mountain Dew" at 1921 E. Magnolia Ave. in Knoxville.

Why does Mountain Dew get a bad rep?

In the early 21st century, the beverage had a major rebrand and it began to be associated with sports like skateboarding and video games.

It also began to receive a negative connotation due to a phenomenon dubbed “Mountain Dew Mouth.” Coined in Diane Sawyer's 2009 documentary Children of the Mountains, this term describes tooth decay caused by drinking too much sugary soda.

It specifically was centered in rural and poor Appalachian communities due to a lack of medical resources.

Vance's ties to Appalachia

Vance's book "Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis" explores his childhood in a rust belt community and how a lack of resources can affect everyday life.

His grandparents Bonnie Blanton and Jim Vance Sr., whom he called Mamaw and Papaw, were from the mountainous region and he often visited them.

"They were from Jackson, Kentucky, a city of around 2,100 people in the Appalachian region," according to Cinncinatti.com .

Vance's joke gets some feedback

His comments confused a few people who didn't understand the reference or the connection. U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez who tweeted , “Vance’s stump has got a nice Jeb Bush quality to it. And I mean that in the worst way possible.”

Throughout his short campaign, Jeb Bush was known for cracking jokes that didn't land well among his audiences.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: JD Vance grew up in Appalachia, here's why Tennessee's Mountain Dew is a source of pride