Paula Deen fans mail butter wrappers to companies in protest

Some of Paula Deen's biggest fans have joined a campaign called Butter for Paula, complete with a Facebook page that has over 600,000 fans. They have been on a mission since June 21 to undo the injustice they believe has been done.

In response to a number of companies dropping their contracts with 66-year-old cooking celebrity Deen due to her admitted use of the N-word, the fans are mailing clean and folded butter wrappers to companies such as Food Network, Sears, JCPenney, Wal-Mart, Home Depot and Walgreens. The wrappers represent Deen's notorious use of butter in her television cooking shows.

"She made a mistake 20 years ago," John Schmitt, campaign manager and hotel night auditor in Indianapolis, tells CNN. "We all make mistakes. I've said things I regret."

"In a lot of ways, she reminds me of my mom -- this funny, gracious lady from a different era," he says. "My mom probably used that word and she wasn't a racist."

Also see: Should Paula Deen have apologized?

The slogan for the group: "A corporation without Paula Deen is like a butter wrapper without butter."

While they admit the campaign is more symbolic than result-oriented, they feel it is important to send a clear message.

"I felt compelled to do something to show that this kind of railroading, for whatever hidden-agenda-ed reason it happened, is not looked kindly upon by the consuming public," writes Liz Vannah, a Facebook campaign supporter from Connecticut.

"It wasn't about the N-word; it was about the extortion thing, about this one crazy employee," says Joyce Dixon from Georgia, a volunteer who helps manage the Facebook fan page.

Unsurprisingly, Deen's supporters haven't received a significant response from the companies, nor did they expect one. However, Deb Burke Vaughn posted a letter on Facebook from Walgreens that she received in response to her butter wrapper.

Also see: Paula Deen allegedly admits to racist joke

"We are phasing out our Paula Deen products," the July 12 letter says in part. " Your comments are being shared with senior management."

Following Deen's PR nightmare and after being fired by almost all the companies she works for, she fired her legal team earlier this month and hired a new set of lawyers.

Her controversial statements about using the N-word were released to the public as a result of a lawsuit against her by a former manager at one of her restaurants. The suit alleges sexual harassment and racism against black employees. She admits in court documents that she had intentions of planning a slave-themed wedding party in 2007.

What are your thoughts on how companies have handled the Paula Deen fiasco? Tell us in the comments below.