The political divide in the United States has now reached Pantone’s Color of the Year.
The Pantone Color Institute has been selecting a color of the year since 1999, guided by “the color/colors that are bubbling up across design,” spokesperson explained.
Pantone’s Color of the Year for 2026 is Cloud Dancer, an off-white shade that, according to the institute, symbolizes calm in a frenetic society.
Highlights
- People are accusing Pantone of racism after the institute announced its Color of the Year for 2026.
- For the first time, the selected color is a shade of white: Cloud Dancer.
- Pantone insisted that the color symbolizes calmness; however, many interpreted it as a dangerous political statement.
The Pantone Color Institute has announced its Color of the Year for 2026...and it’s a shade of white
Image credits: Patone
The color is “associated with new beginnings” and “signifies our desire for a fresh start,” Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the institute, told CNN.
But a large group of people took issue with the selected hue, claiming that the “whitewashing of America has gone too far.”
One critic said Pantone—which, for the first time, has chosen a shade of white as its Color of the Year—failed to “read the room.”
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“In this political & social climate, that's interesting timing,” another person noted.
The US recorded 11,679 hate crimes in 2024, half of which were motivated by race or ethnicity, according to recent data from the US Department of Justice.
“It’s not just out of touch, it’s symbolic. It’s a reminder of who still controls the narrative. They are openly mocking us, choosing purity white as the cultural color of the year while the rest of us are screaming for humanity,” a separate critic wrote.
The off-white shade, called Cloud Dancer, is meant to symbolize calmness in a frenetic society
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Another commenter said Pantone’s shade of white was a “political statement” to US society. “Call me too woke, I don’t care. I don’t think I’m wrong.”
Someone else labeled the choice “tone deaf.”
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Others compared the move to Sydney Sweeney’s controversial American Eagle ad, which featured a play on the words “jeans” and “genes.”
“It’s giving Sydney Sweeney has good genes. You’re going to choose white and market it as a soothing reset? For who, babe?” someone else asked.
“This feels racist,” agreed another user.
Several people have accused Pantone of racism, claiming that the choice represents a "political statement"
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However, not everyone believed Pantone’s decision was ill-intentioned. “Pretentious? Yes. Racist? Doubtful. I'm all for calmness and peace in these times,” one person shared.
Some compared the color choice to Sydney Sweeney's American Eagle jeans ad
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From a creative perspective, many argued that Pantone should have selected a different color and even debated whether white is a color in the first place.
“I’m so sick of white… especially for interior design,” one netizen wrote.
"I wonder if the folks at @pantone were told, as I was when I was a child, that white is not a color... It's the absence of it," shared someone else.
Image credits: Patone
Others mocked the very concept of a “Color of the Year” and its fancy names, writing, “Oh good! We have a cute new name for ‘white.’ Now our American flag can be Tomato Puree, Cloud Dancer, and Cerulean.”
This is the first time Pantone has selected a shade of white as its Color of the Year
Image credits: Patone
The company described the Color of the Year as "a billowy white imbued with serenity" that "invites true relaxation and focus, allowing the mind to wander and creativity to breathe."
Pantone is considered a leading authority on color, forecasting design trends, and advising brands.
Previous choices for its Color of the Year included 2025’s Mocha Mousse, “a mellow brown infused with a sensorial and comforting warmth,” and 2024’s Peach Fuzz, “a light, fruity tone that conjures peace and serenity.”
Shortly after the criticism erupted, the company's vice president, Laurie Pressman, told The Washington Post that "skin tones" had no influence on their latest color choice.
The institute has denied the accusations, explaining that the decision wasn’t influenced by "skin tones"
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Executive director Eiseman addressed the creative critiques, clarifying that it wasn’t a matter of "defaulting to white." Instead, she said the neutral shade will "open up new avenues and ways of thinking.”
"It's hard to understand how they didn't anticipate controversy over this color choice," one user commented
